Ahmedabad, India
India women took a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series on Thursday (Oct 24) by beating New Zealand women at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Deepti Sharma and Radha Yadav were the architects of the win as the hosts won by 59 runs. Deepti (42) and Tejal Hasabnis (42) led the charge while Radha Yadav scalped three wickets to help India win and take a 1-0 lead in the series.
A winning start to the ODI series in Ahmedabad ?#TeamIndia complete a 59 runs victory over New Zealand in the 1st #INDvNZ ODI and take a 1-0 lead ??
Scorecard - https://t.co/VGGT7lSS13@IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/QUNOirPjbh
— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) October 24, 2024
India take 1-0 lead
Tasked to chase 228 to win, New Zealand did not have a great start as they lost wickets at consistent intervals. Brooke Halliday was the top-scorer with 39 runs, while Maddy Green and Amelia Kerr were also at their best but could not help their side win. Kerr earlier scalped four wickets and was the most impactful player on the pitch. However, her heroics could not help New Zealand win the opening contest.
Radha ended with figures of 35/3, while Saima Thakor ended up with 26/2 in her spell. The pair helped bowl out New Zealand for 168, resulting in a 59-run win for the hosts.
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Earlier, Deepti and Tejal helped India score 227 as the hosts had a respectable total against the recently crowned T20 World Cup champions. Jemimah Rodrigues (35), Yastika Bhatia (37) and Shafali Verma (33) also contributed significantly to the total.
The two teams will next meet on Sunday with an opportunity for India to win the series while New Zealand will look to bounce back into the series. India will also hope to have Harmanpreet Kaur back for the series as she missed the opening ODI match. She was named in the Team of the Tournament during the T20 World Cup last week.