New Zealand 159 for 5 in 33 overs (Bates 51, Kerr 47*, Matthews 3-28) beat West Indies 168 for 7 in 35 overs (Henry 44, Kyshona 36, Jonas 2-22) by five runs (DLS method)
Confusion about who had won the match took over at the end of the first ODI between West Indies and New Zealand in Antigua as bad light ended play in a rain-hit match. Chasing 169 in a 35-overs-a-side contest following a rain delay, New Zealand needed 10 off 12 balls to win with five wickets down, and the umpires declared the match over following bad light as the cut-off time had been reached. The umpires shook hands with the West Indies players a fair distance from the pitch, leaving the New Zealand batters unaware of the result. Amelia Kerr, who was unbeaten then with Brooke Halliday, later said West Indies thought they had won while Halliday believed New Zealand had won, before the two captains and the umpires cleared things out and it was revealed that the visitors had actually won.
"There was a little bit of confusion," Amelia said after the match. "The umpires said 'time' (called us in) because of the light. I wasn't sure what was going on. I was ready to finish things but Brooke thought we'd won. West Indies thought they had won. Soph [captain Sophie Devine] came in with the umpire and cleared things out. It was a weird finish, was weird waiting when things were sunny [in the morning] but we must not be fazed by it."
West Indies captain Hayley Matthews expressed her disappointment in the way the match ended but took the positives and the defeat in stride.
"The girls put up a really good fight in the first innings to get us to the total that we got, so kudos to Kyshona [Knight] and Chinelle [Henry]," Matthews said. "We took some crucial wickets in the middle after the start New Zealand got. Of course it's disappointing the way the game ended but all in all, I think it was a good first game."
It was the first match for both teams in the new Women's Championship cycle and New Zealand's five-run win by DLS method was set up by Suzie Bates' 51, Kerr's 47*, and Fran Jonas' two-for.
The start was delayed by a wet pitch which prompted Devine to bowl upon winning the toss. West Indies started well in the seven-over powerplay, scoring 36 for the loss of Rashada Williams, but they lost wickets consistently in the next few overs. Hannah Rowe had Natasha McLean caught behind, before Jonas accounted for Stafanie Taylor and Matthews in consecutive overs.
The following five-and-a-half overs went for just nine runs before Shabika Gajnabi was run out. But then, Kyshona Knight and Chinelle Henry fought back with an 83-run partnership for the sixth wicket that held the innings together. Henry was the aggressor with her 44 off 34 with five fours and Kyshona scored 36 off 61 before both were dismissed by Jess Kerr towards the end.
New Zealand's chase began with ease and regular boundaries. Bates went after Shamilia Connell in the fifth over to pick up three fours and she continued to score freely with Devine, bringing up their fifty partnership in just 45 balls. It was Matthews who provided the breakthrough with Devine's wicket, having her caught for 25 off 24.
The quick start gave Bates and Amelia time to coast along with singles and the odd boundary. Bates got to her 29th ODI fifty, but with the stand at 47, she also handed a catch to Kyshona, off Afy Fletcher.
Amelia and Maddy Green took New Zealand closer with a 31-run stand but Green, Lauren Down and Hayley Jansen fell in quick succession for just 18 runs. Amelia marched along to keep New Zealand ahead, especially with a boundary right after Jensen's dismissal to bring the equation to 15 off 18. Amelia and Halliday milked five singles off the next over to make it 10 off 12 before bad light stopped play.
Thirteen runs had been scored off the two overs before the stop, which had taken the visitors four runs above the DLS target of 155.
