White Ferns defeat Proteas Women to secure T20 series victory

2026-03-22 - 06:30

South Africa paid for poor fielding on Sunday as New Zealand earned a six-wicket victory in the fourth women’s T20 International in Wellington, with the hosts taking an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series. Batting first after winning the toss, the SA team got off to a slow start as they were restricted to 41/1 in the powerplay. But they ultimately produced a solid effort, led by middle-order batter Annerie Dercksen who bashed 55 not out off 32 balls – her maiden T20 International half-century – in an innings which included eight fours and a six. Seam bowler Jess Kerr spearheaded the White Ferns attack with impressive figures of 3/16, but the Proteas would have been confident of defending their total after reaching 159/6. New Zealand innings Nonetheless, New Zealand coasted to 160/4 with nine balls to spare, with experienced middle-order batter Sophie Devine (64 off 34) top-scoring for the hosts. Devine was dropped by Chloe Tryon before she got off the mark, and again by Kayla Reyneke when she was on 25. Left-arm spinner Tryon grabbed 2/13 but South Africa’s bowlers struggled to contain the home side’s line-up, largely due to multiple spilled catches. Not good enough in the field Captain Laura Wolvaardt admitted after the game that the Proteas had been too sloppy in the field to put up a fight for the win. “We thought it was a par total. We were very pleased with the score we got to, despite our start,” Wolvaardt said. “It was a tough second half. When you give chances to batters like Devine, you are going to regret it.” The fifth and final match of the T20 series between SA and New Zealand will be played in Christchurch on Wednesday.