ICC Women's World Cup: SWOT analysis of New Zealand

In just about a week’s time, the most awaited tournament in the history of women’s cricket, the Women’s World Cup, is to commence on Friday, 4th March in the land of the Kiwis. 

After a resounding success in the last edition of the mega event and the T20 World Cup that followed in the year 2020, women’s cricket made the frenzy fans stand up and notice their immense contribution to the sport. 

Over the years, the game has largely been dominated by their male counterparts, with the top women cricket teams competing for the coveted trophy away from the glaring eyes of the media. 

However, things changed for the better as the last edition of the extravaganza scripted a revolution in India and showcased glimpses of the great things to follow in the history of women's sport. 

While the World Cup is a quadrennial affair, the growing concerns of the pandemic resulted in the authorities postponing the tournament by a year to ensure the health and safety of the players. 

After a year-long hiatus, the iconic event is set to kickstart in the southern hemisphere with the inaugural match between hosts New Zealand and West Indies at the Bay Oval starting on 4th March. 

And, talking about the home team, we at Cricket.com help you with a detailed analysis of the team ahead of the much-anticipated tournament. 

Strength 

Over the past couple of years, one of the most significant reasons for the much-improved performance of the White Ferns has been attributed to their batting unit. 

While the likes of Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine have shouldered the bulk of the responsibility of the side, the emergence of Amelia Kerr at number three has provided them with stability at the top of the order. 

The 21-year old etched her name in the record books by registering the highest individual total of an unbeaten 232 against Ireland in 2018. Her consistent performances in the 50-over format and her recent outing against the Women in Blue make her one of the players to watch out for in the tournament. 

The White Ferns have adopted an aggressive style of play at the start of the innings to make optimum use of the powerplay and score some quick runs. In the 40 innings played thus far by them in ODIs since the 2017 World Cup, New Zealand have scored 1802 in the first 10 overs, the best among the top five nations.

With the condition conducive for strokeplay and the recent form of Suzie Bates, the team would rely on her to help them get off to a flying start in the field restrictions. 

Weakness 

While the batting prowess has been one of the highlights for the White Ferns in the past couple of seasons, the same cannot be said about their new-ball bowling attack. 

The home team struggled to find an able player to partner Lea Tahuhu post the mega event and handed a debut to Amelia's elder sister, Jess Kerr in January 2020 against the visiting Protea side.

One of the reasons for their below-par outing with the ball has been the lack of wickets taken in the first 10 overs. In the 40 innings since the 2017 World Cup, New Zealand have scalped a wicket every 55.8 deliveries, which is the worst among the top five nations. 

With the opposition batters having laid a solid platform at the top of the order, they scored runs at a run-rate of 4.6 runs per over, making it difficult for the White Ferns to restrict them to a low total or bundle them out whilst defending a target. 

Opportunity

One of the inspirations the New Zealand side can take is the fact that the last time they hosted a World Cup at home, the White Ferns edged past Australia in a nail-biting thriller by four runs to win the title in 2000.  

22 years later, they will set foot at the same venue and hope to replicate the heroics of their former players, with much-better preparations and a lot more confidence. They will set foot at the Bay Oval on the back of their recent 4-1 series win against India, which was touted to be a curtain-raiser for the two sides ahead of this event. 

Threat

New Zealand is known to be one of the trickiest places for spinners in the white-ball format, mainly due to the dimensions of the ground and the strong breeze on offer on most occasions. 

While it has produced quality seamers across the national sides in the recent past, the performances of the spinners in the White Ferns line-up has prompted the people to stand and take notice. 

In this format since the 2017 World Cup, New Zealand spinners have picked up 108 wickets at balls per wicket ratio of 32.1, the best among the top five nations. 

However, if you observe the above chart carefully, 38.89 percent of the wickets have been taken by off-spinner Leigh Kasperek. While most people expected her to make it to the 15-member squad for the World Cup, the team management and the selectors opted to drop her for reasons unknown and drafted the left-arm spin of Fran Jonas.

The teenager is relatively new to the nuances of international cricket and has played only four games thus far, resulting in the spin department looking very weak despite the option of Amelia Kerr and her leg spinners.

Squad:

Sophie Devine (c), Amy Satterthwaite (vc), Suzie Bates, Georgia Plimmer, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Hayley Jensen, Fran Jonas, Jess Kerr, Melie Kerr, Frankie Mackay, Rosemary Mair, Katey Martin, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu

Fixtures:

March 4 vs West Indies

March 7 vs Bangladesh

March 10 vs India

March 13 vs Australia 

March 17 vs South Africa

March 20 vs England

March 26 vs Pakistan