New Zealand Women vs Sri Lanka Women, ICCW T20 WC 2023, Today Match Prediction 19 February 2023

nzw vs slw Match Prediction & Analysis

The 17th game of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup, 2023, will be interesting. New Zealand Women must win this one by a big margin to keep their hopes alive for a berth in the semifinal. They come here with a big win against Bangladesh Women. Sri Lanka is second on the points table despite losing the last game against Australia Women.  

New Zealand Women have never lost a game against Sri Lanka Women and have won all nine games between the two teams. They come here with a big win which will make the side confident. Sri Lankans are one win away from a berth in the next round, and they will give it all they have. We expect a tight contest with big stakes involved for both teams.

TEAMS PREVIEW

New Zealand Women Preview

Sophie Devine's team finally beat poor form, and the side comes here with a 71-run win against Bangladesh Women. They did well with the bat and the ball in the last game and shall look to carry this momentum forward. They need a big win to improve their run rate, and Devine would like to see her players play with the same precision as in the previous game.  

Bernadine Bezuidenhout has batted well and would like to set up a big stand with Suzie Bates. Sophie Devine must bring her experience to play in the middle order and add runs with Amelia Kerr and Maddy Green. The side will like runs from Georgia Plimmer and Hannah Rowe down the order.  

Their bowlers did a good job against the Bangladeshis. Lea Tahuhu and Jess Kerr must bowl tight spells upfront and put the Sri Lankan top order under pressure. Hannah Rowe and Molly Penfold bowled well in the last game. They have variety in their bowling, with Eden Carson, Kerr, and Bates on the side.  
 

New Zealand Women Predicted Playing XI:

Sophie Devine (c), Bernadine Bezuidenhout (wk), Suzie Bates, Georgia Plimmer, Amelia Kerr, Maddy Green, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu, Jess Kerr, Eden Carson, Molly Penfold

New Zealand Women Actual Playing XI:

Jess Kerr, Hannah Rowe, Bernadine Bezuidenhout, Lea Tahuhu, Maddy Green, Amelia Kerr, Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Sophie Devine, Georgia Plimmer, Fran Jonas

Sri Lanka Women Preview

After two consecutive wins Chamari Athapaththu's team received a hammering at the hands of Australians in the last game. They went down by 10 wickets in the last game, managing only 112 runs batting first. It will be a tough ask for them against New Zealand, given the poor record they have.  

Chamari Athapaththu must lead from the front and score runs at the top alongside Harshitha Madavi. Vishmi Gunaratne has played well, and she will need to build partnerships in the middle order with Oshadi Ranasinghe and Anushka Sanjeewani. The side will also need contributions from Nilakshi de Silva and Ama Kanchana down the order.  

Their bowlers have been impressive in this tournament and the side will need good spells from Sugandika Kumari and Oshadi Ranasinghe with the new ball. Malsha Shehani must keep the scoring rate under check in the middle overs with Achini Kulasuriya. Inoka Ranaweera and Athapaththu will have to perform well in the supporting role. 

Sri Lanka Women Predicted Playing XI:

Chamari Athapaththu (c), Harshitha Samarawickrama, Vishmi Gunaratne, Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), Nilakshi de Silva, Malsha Shehani, Oshadi Ranasinghe, Ama Kanchana, Sugandika Kumari, Inoka Ranaweera, Achini Kulasuriya

Sri Lanka Women Actual Playing XI:

Kavisha Dilhari, Achini Kulasuriya, Chamari Atapattu, Harshitha Madavi, Vishmi Gunaratne, Nilakshi de Silva, Malsha Shehani, Oshadi Ranasinghe, Inoka Ranaweera, Anushka Sanjeewani, Sugandika Kumari

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

There is forecast clear skies over Paarl on February 19. The wicket will have moisture and it won't make it very easy to bat on. The pitch has always assisted the fast bowlers and any side batting first on this wicket would be happy with a score of around 150 runs.

Venue Details

The wicket at Boland Park, Paarl, offers good assistance to the bowlers and hence it isn't a typical stand-and-deliver kind of T20 wicket. Batters must work their way on this wicket, and when they get set in, they can score runs. Fast bowlers enjoy bowling on this surface with nice seam and carry.

Toss: To Bowl

The pitch has historically assisted fast bowlers and there is always some juice on the track which the side bowling first can exploit. The pitch is expected to get better as the game progresses, and the captain winning the toss would like to have a bowl at this ground first.