In the ICC Womens T 20 World Cup 2026 tournament, two teams from Group ‘B’ have been determined for the semi-finals. The New Zealand team is now out of the tournament after a crushing defeat by England by 9 wickets in the match on Saturday (June 27). England and West Indies have made it to the top four from this group. It was not only a disappointing defeat for New Zealand but also the end of a historic and glorious era of New Zealand cricket. After this match, three of the team’s stalwarts, Sophie Devine, Suzy Bates and Leah Tahuhu, retired from international cricket. After the match, all the three legendary players were emotional. He was given an emotional farewell by the New Zealand and England players with a guard of honour.
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Sophie Devine, Suzy Bates and Leah Tahuhoo announced their retirements before the start of the tournament. These three players have played a significant role in taking New Zealand women’s cricket to the pinnacle of success. Suzy Bates retires as the greatest and most capped player in New Zealand cricket history. Bates scored a world record 10,721 runs in her 370 international matches.
During her historic 20-year international career, Sophie Devine played a total of 317 matches for New Zealand. During this period, she scored 4,279 runs in ODIs and 3,817 runs in T20Is, including several powerful innings. She also took 241 wickets, making her one of the most successful all-rounders. On the other hand, the key fast bowler of the Kiwi team, Leah Tahuhu, represented the team in 207 matches and took 225 wickets in her 15-year international career.
To make this historic and emotional moment even more special, players and support staff from both New Zealand and England teams took to the field together. All the players formed a line and gave an emotional farewell to these three legendary cricketers by a guard of honour. All three players had tears in their eyes as they said goodbye to the game.
Batting first, New Zealand scored 163 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in 20 overs. Captain Amelia Kerr top scored for the team with 42 off 34 balls. Vs Sophie Devine, scored 30 off 14 balls with three sixes in her last international match. Suzy Bates also batted well and scored 19 off 13 balls before being run out on the last ball of the innings. However, Leia Tahuhu did not get a single wicket.
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