New Delhi: New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine’s 111 off 112 deliveries went in vain as her side went down against defending champions Australia in their first match of the women’s ODI World Cup on Wednesday. After her dismissal, the team suffered a batting collapse of the lower order and lost the high-scoring clash by 89 runs.
It was the Australian side which stole the show with extraordinary all-round performance with Ashleigh Gardner (115) emerging as the highest scorer as the Aussie women scored a massive 326 runs in 49.3 overs. Apart from Gardner, Phoebe Litchfield, Ellyse Perry, and Kim Garth made valuable contributions with the bat to help the side cross the 300-run mark.
Litchfield and Perry scored 45 and 33 runs respectively while Garth scored quick 38 runs towards the end to help the Aussies dominate the game. For New Zealand, Jess Kerr and Lea Tahuhu were the pick of the bowlers with three wickets each while Amelia Kerr and Bree Illing claimed two wickets apiece.
🚨WORLD CHAMPION AUSTRALIA BEAT NEWZEALAND BY 89 RUNS IN THE 2ND MATCH OF THE WC🚨
-What a team, Play like a champion Win like a champion. 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/RkQ93PDxfv
— DIVYANSH CHAUHAN (@Imchauhan28) October 1, 2025
Devine lone silver lining for NZ
Apart from skipper Devine who scored 112 runs off as many balls, none of the other batters could contribute in a manner they were required to. Amelia Kerr, who shined with the ball, was the only other notable contributor with 33 runs while Brooke Halliday and Isabella Gaze notched up identical score of 28 runs each.
For the Australian side, Sophie Molineux and Annabel Sutherland claimed three wickets each while
Alana King picked up two wickets.
Biggest defeat margin for NZ-W in ODI WCs
186 vs IND-W, Derby, 2017
141 vs AUS-W, Wellington, 2022
89 vs AUS-W, Indore, 2025*
75 vs AUS-W, Melbourne, 1988