NZ amble past the Irish

Favourites New Zealand took a giant step towards confirming a semifinal berth when they handed debutantes Ireland a 42-run defeat in their Group A fixture of the Women's World Twenty20 at the Sylhet Cricket Stadium yesterday.
New Zealand's inspirational skipper Suzie Bates had little hesitation when she won the toss and made most use of a placid wicket, which although a bit on the slower side, held little threat to the batsmen. Bates (68) and Frances Mackay (51) started cautiously, but their 116-run opening stand gave Sara McGlashan the ideal platform to plunder 34 off just 13 balls to set the highest total of the tournament so far (171 for 3). Irish skipper Isobel Joyce was the most impressive of the Irish bowlers as she bowled a mean spell for 17 for 1.
The Ireland reply started briskly as they reached 50 off 46 balls for the loss of one wicket, but three more wickets in the space of the next five overs, including Shillington (41) and Joyce (28) made it an uphill battle. An unbeaten 42 off 28 balls from Isobel's twin sister Cecelia only reduced the margin of defeat for the newcomers.

SCORES IN BRIEF
NEW ZEALAND: 171 for 3 (Bates 68, Mackay 51, McGlashan 34 not out; Richardson 2-32)
IRELAND: 129 for 5 (Cececlia 41, Shillington 28; Nielsen 2-23)
Result: New Zealand won by 42 runs.
Player-of-the-match: Suzie Bates