Goswami Helps India Beat New Zealand

Aldershot: India women's team skipper Jhulan Goswami led from the front with an all-round performance to help her team beat New Zealand women by three wickets to finish third in the NatWest Women's T20 Quadrangular Series.

In the third place playoff match, Goswami struck a quickfire 33 off 28 balls, besides claiming a wicket as India achieved the target of 96 with a ball to spare, after New Zealand had decided to bat first.

Chasing a meager target, India made a disastrous start before Goswami walked into the middle with the scorecard reading 47 for four to rescue her side.

But for Goswami's performance, India would have lost the match as the other batters failed to make notable contributions. The skipper was awarded the Player of the Match for her valuable knock, which included two boundaries.

Only two other Indian players reached the double figures -- Veda Krishnamurthy (15) and Harmanpreet Kaur (14).

Earlier, Indian bowlers dished out a disciplined performance as they restricted New Zealand to a low total at the Officers Club Services Ground here.

Medium pacer Amita Sharma returned impressive figures of two for 11, while Goswami, Snehal Pradhan and Priyanka Roy claimed a wicket each.

For New Zealand, Amy Satterthwaite top-scored with 35 off 44 balls, while medium pacer Kelly Anderson and off-spinner Aimee Watkins picked up three and two wickets, respectively.

Brief scores
New Zealand 95 for 7 (Satterthwaite 35, Sharma 2-11)
India 96 for 7 (Goswami 33*, Anderson 3-17)
Result India won by three wickets