'Might be donning Australian shirt during match against India' - Sophie Devine ditches Trans-Tasman rivalry

New Zealand captain Sophie Devine admitted that her team will be wearing Australian shirts and cheering for their trans-Tasman rivals when Alyssa Healy and Co. take on India in a crucial Women's T20 World Cup 2024 clash on Sunday, October 13.

The match has semi-final implications as New Zealand and India are in a two-way race to make the cut. Australia are sitting pretty at the top of Group A, having won all three games they played so far. The defending champions have a healthy net run-rate (NRR) of +2.786 and even a heavy defeat against India might not hamper their qualification chances. However, a win for India could make things difficult for the White Ferns.

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The Women in Blue have won two matches out of the three they have played. New Zealand have also won two from three matches. However, India have a better NRR of +0.576 compared to New Zealand's +0.282. If India lose to Australia on Sunday, New Zealand will progress if they can beat a lacklustre Pakistan side on Monday.

“Yeah potentially. We might schedule a training session at the same time. I think a few of us might be donning an Australian shirt and cheering them on a little bit. We know it’s going to be a great game. They’re two fierce competitors and two quality sides, so at the end of the day, let’s just hope there’s a good game of cricket and that Australia win,” Devine said after a comfortable win against Sri Lanka in Sharjah on Saturday.

We’re fortunate as well that we play last in our pool: Sophie Devine

New Zealand can still qualify for the knockouts if India beat Australia but they will have to get the better of Pakistan by a comprehensive margin to better Harmanpreet Kaur's side's NRR. However, Devine doesn't want to get into those complications and that is why she is hoping for Australia to do them a favour when they collide with India at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

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“We’re really pleased with the position we’re in. Our fate is in our hands in terms of whether we can progress through to the semifinal. We’re fortunate as well that we play last in our pool. So we know exactly what the situation will be before we play our last game. So for us, it is simple. We will now reflect, review and watch the game between India and Australia with a lot of interest. Hopefully, our Aussie mates can do us a favour and win against India,” Devine explained.