It was never going to be straightforward: first match of the World Cup, the holders on the other side, 34°C heat sticking to everything, and that awkward little stat of 15 straight ODI defeats to Australia stretching back eight years. In the end, New Zealand came second by 89 runs in Indore, yet they left with just enough evidence to believe they are no longer easy beats.
Australia’s 326 for 7 felt above-par on a fresh Holkar surface hosting its first women’s international. New Zealand then slipped to 0 for 2 and, for a moment, the contest threatened to drift into the familiar. That was until Sophie Devine – eight overs already in her legs and sweat pouring off her cap – decided the day deserved a proper scrap.
“A couple of years ago we would have thrown the towel in pretty early. It shows the mindset of the group that we stay in the fight,” the captain said afterwards, almost apologising for how drenched her playing shirt had become.
Devine built slowly: fifty from 69 balls, feeling out swing under lights that had begun to nip rather than glow. Then, almost on cue, she found fourth gear, galloping from 50 to her ninth ODI hundred in 38 deliveries. The running between wickets was relentless; boundaries over cover reminded everyone she still times it as cleanly as anyone in the women’s game.
Brooke Halliday’s 28 kept the board moving before she miscued to long-on. When that wicket fell, 200 were still required from 20 overs – admittedly “gettable” on this ground, though only if someone stayed with the skipper. Maddy Green could manage just 18 balls, yet Isabella Gaze arrived with six rasping fours in a 35-ball stand worth 54 that had a few Australian brows tightening.
All the while Devine’s body was beginning to bark. “I’ll just say come and feel my shirt, I think you’ll see how tough that was,” she joked, adding that the squad’s conditioning work across the last year “has been exactly for a knock like that”.
The moment came on 137 when she lifted Megan Schutt towards the deep midwicket rope; Jess Jonassen steadied, swallowed the chance, and the chase was effectively gone. Gaze followed 13 balls later and New Zealand’s final 237 never really threatened.
Australia’s earlier total owed plenty to Ellyse Perry’s unobtrusive 78 and a typically urgent 63 from Beth Mooney. Their lower order chipped in 90 off the last ten overs – the difference on a night when the ball skidded on.
Devine, meanwhile, finished a draining 91.1 overs in the field and at the crease. “So I’m incredibly proud that, well I was probably a little bit slow towards the end getting a bit tired and things, but I know every one of our players wants to be there and wants to be contributing throughout the full 100 overs,” she said. “So to answer your question, yeah, I think it probably was the most demanding; running around in the field, bowling, trying to keep the Aussies under 400. So yeah, I think both physically and mentally as well, it was pretty draining.”
Coach Ben Sawyer will be encouraged that, beneath the gloss of Devine’s century, his bowlers forced Australia to graft longer than anticipated, and the middle order at least flickered. Yet the simple maths remains: someone else must join the party if they are to break that losing run, let alone reach a semi-final.
Next up are Pakistan in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Cooler evening conditions are forecast, which will help, but more support with both bat and ball feels non-negotiable. For now New Zealand carry away a defeat, a few aching limbs, and the reassurance they are edging closer to matching the best – even if the scoreboard still says otherwise.
