New Zealand edge Ireland in thriller to keep World Cup hopes alive

Women’s T20 World Cup: Defending champions New Zealand win thriller to keep hopes alive New Zealand beat Ireland by four runs to keep World Cup hopes alive after Suzie Bates and Melie Kerr heroics see off resilient opponents; watch the ICC Women's T20 World Cup exclusively live on Sky Sports Friday 19 June 2026 22:31, UK Defending champions New Zealand beat Ireland by four runs to keep their ICC Women's T20 World Cup hopes alive in a thriller that went down to the final ball of the match. New Zealand legend Suzie Bates - who was sensationally called into the line-up at the last minute after all-rounder Sophie Devine fell ill on the bus to the game - closed out a resilient Ireland side in the last over to secure a vital first win of the tournament. Ireland, on the other hand, agonisingly missed out on their first World Cup win and are all but eliminated from contention in Group A after losing all three of their matches so far. - All today's scorecards: Women's T20 World Cup - Stream T20 World Cup matches FREE in Sky Sports App - Watch the Women's T20 World Cup live on Sky Sports and NOW Gabby Lewis and her side got off to a fast start when Orla Prendergast and Arlene Kelly took the wickets of New Zealand openers Izzy Gaze (1) and Georgia Plimmer (4) in two successive balls early on, and Cara Murray ended the brief fightback of captain Melie Kerr (30 off 24) to leave their opponents reeling on 48-4. Izzy Sharp (36) and Brooke Halliday (34) steadied the ship with a brilliant 62-run fifth-wicket stand, and an important 19 from Bates saw New Zealand post a competitive - but reachable - total of 140-6 after their 20 overs. Ireland started their innings slowly after an underwhelming powerplay saw them post just 35 runs after the first six overs, but captain Lewis (58 off 53) and Prendergast (59 off 53) built an incredible 100-run partnership to put Ireland in the ascendancy, needing just 25 off the last 15 balls to win the game. But New Zealand, with their backs against the wall, took a huge wicket when Prendergast was caught on the boundary from Kerr (2-23), and the wickets of Stokell and Lewis quickly followed before Bates put the game to bed with the last over. Stream T20 World Cup matches FREE Everyone can stream all 12 group matches involving England, Scotland and Ireland, as well as the semi-finals and final of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup live for FREE on the Sky Sports App. All you have to do is download the latest version of the Sky Sports App onto your phone or tablet and log in. Download the Sky Sports App on: Watch every ball of the Women's T20 World Cup exclusively live on Sky Sports and NOW through to the final at Lord's on July 5.