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A horror effort in the field cost the White Ferns badly in their opening game of the T20 World Cup in England.
The defending champions were beaten by the West Indies by seven wickets in Southampton.
The White Ferns scored 162 for six in their 20 overs, middle-order batter Brooke Halliday top-scoring with 40 off 32 balls.
The West Indies chased down that total with just one ball to spare, scoring 163 for three, largely on the back of a substandard White Ferns fielding effort.
New Zealand dropped six catches, and wicketkeeper Izzy Gaze missed a stumping opportunity.
‘‘A tough day [for that] to happen in a really important game for us,’’ New Zealand captain Melie Kerr said.
‘‘Our bowlers are creating opportunities, but unfortunately, we weren’t taking them and there were too many chances put down, and it hurt us a lot.’’
West Indies opening batter Shemaine Campbelle was the player of the match for scoring an unbeaten 90 off 62 balls, as she guided her team to victory.
New Zealand’s next game is on Wednesday, also in Southampton, against Sri Lanka.
Australia’s spinners shone in a 65-run win over South Africa as the six-time winners made a successful start in their quest to regain the T20 World Cup.
Phoebe Litchfield’s 50 off 24 balls gave Australia energy after they had been reduced to 24 for two inside four overs, before Georgia Wareham (32) and Ellyse Perry (36) combined for the biggest partnership, 58 runs, of the innings.
South Africa failed to get a stranglehold on their chase of 173, Sophie Molineux taking two for 17 in her first T20 World Cup game as captain as Australia gained revenge for their semifinal defeat in 2024.
Sarah and Kathryn Bryce’s 106-run partnership powered Scotland to a breakthrough victory as they beat Ireland by 40 runs at Old Trafford.
The Bryce sisters came together with Scotland in a potentially precarious position at 36 for two but dominated the Irish attack to help carry their side to 161 for five, Kathryn scoring 60 and Sarah 49.
Ireland stemmed the flow of runs later on with three quick wickets but could not take momentum into their reply and were rolled for 21.
England beat Sri Lanka by 87 runs in the first game of the tournament. — RNZ/Allied Media