Harmanpreet expects team to play without baggage in T20 World Cup
The 2020 runners-up and four-time semi-finalists are seeking to go all the way in the UAE having been boosted by warm-up wins over the West Indies and South Africa.
Amelia Kerr, the Player of the Tournament in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, was left ‘speechless’ after her outings with both bat and ball guided New Zealand to their maiden title following a 32-run win in the final against South Africa at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium here on Sunday.
The 24-year all-rounder helped the Kiwis defeat South Africa, who finished as the runners-up for the second year running, by 32 runs.
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She helped New Zealand set a fighting total of 158/5, scoring a steady 43 runs in the first innings. She then stepped up with the ball and built enormous pressure on the Proteas batters with her three wickets, including the all-important wicket of skipper Laura Wolvaardt, the leading run scorer in this edition of the tournament, when she looked set at 33 runs to restrict their opponents to 126/9.
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“I guess bowling’s what first got me in the White Ferns and it’s something that I’ve always wanted to keep getting better at. So to be able to pick up wickets and have the confidence to step up in big moments,” she added.
New Zealand captain Sophie Devine appreciated Kerr’s efforts and claimed she is a ‘once in a generation player.’
“We all know she is a once-in-a-generation player. What she was able to do tonight was incredible. Physically to do what she did with the bat, I think she can’t feel her legs. She is not a bad cricketer but the person that she is, the world is her oyster,” said Devine.
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