If one is looking at rivalries in women’s cricket, they do not come across anything significant than the New Zealand Women vs Australia Women cricket rivalry. The two powerhouse rivals have been going at each other’s throats for decades, with matches that anyone would trust to give them goosebumps. Whether in an exhilarating T20I clash or an ODI standoff, the skirmish between the Australia women’s national cricket team vs New Zealand women’s national cricket team is filled with talent, heat, and extraordinary unforgettable moments. In this blog, we are taking the fans towards the Australia Women’s National Cricket Team vs New Zealand Women’s National Cricket Team timeline to relive the iconic moments of cricket rivalry.
Early Encounters: 1948 to 1980s
- Australia Women tour of New Zealand, 1948: Australia and New Zealand played their first match in Test format in 1948 at Wellington. AUS Women won the match by an innings and 102 runs, with Una Paisley making his test debut with 108 runs. Further, Betty Wilson also displayed her batting skills by scoring 90 and a flair in bowling by dismissing 4 Australian batters in her debut Test match.
- New Zealand Women tour of Australia, 1972: After losing and drawing the match with the Aussies, New Zealand women’s players demonstrated their growing strength in the sport. In 1972, they won a Test match against Australia by 143 runs. Janice Stead (95), Lynda Prichard (66), and Judi Doull (56) were key batters for the White Ferns. Pat Carrick took 6 and 3 wickets in Australia’s first and second innings. However, it was Australian bowler Lesley Johnston who gained attention for 7 dismissals in the first innings.
- Women’s World Cup 1973: Australia played its first ODI match against New Zealand in 1973. Bev Wilson (50) was the only player to hit the 50-run mark in the match, leading the Southern Stars to clinch the victory by 35 runs.
- New Zealand Women’s tour of Australia, 1985: The 1st ODI of this series finished with Australia winning the match by 9 wickets. While restricting New Zealand’s total to 58, the run-chase of 59 was too easy for Australia’s women. Skipper Denise Emerson and Denise Annetts’ partnership for 51 runs conclude the formalities for the Australian team.
- New Zealand Women’s tour of Australia, 1985: On the very next day, in the 2nd ODI, New Zealand retaliated with powerful performances, especially by captain Debbie Hockley. The Australian players could amass only 155 runs in the 60-over innings. The run-chase of 156 runs, fueled by the loss of the last match, was pulled off by captain Debbie Hockley (72) and wicketkeeper Ingrid Jagersma (52).
- Australia Women’s tour of New Zealand, 1990: The 3rd Test of the series at Christchurch finished with Australia winning the game by 8 wickets. For New Zealand, Jackie Clark, Debbie Hockley, and Karen Gunn were crucial players. Whereas for Australia, it was their team effort that they replied to New Zealand’s 197 with 292.
- Australia Women’s tour of New Zealand, 1990: New Zealand won the 2nd ODI of the series by 8 wickets. After dismissing the Aussies for 122 runs, the New Zealand women scored 123 for just 2 wickets.
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Close Battles: 1990s to 2005
- Women’s World Cup 1993: The 25th match of the 1993 Women’s World Cup featured a showdown between Australia and New Zealand. Aussies played 51.3 overs, producing 77 runs. However, New Zealand completed the run-chase of 78 in just 18.2 overs. Penny Kinsella and Debbie Hockley made a partnership of 78 runs to clinch the victory for their side.
- Australia Women’s tour of New Zealand, 1995: The Test match between the Australia Women’s team and the New Zealand Women’s team concluded in a draw. However, Emily Drumm’s 161 in the first innings is remembered to this day.
- New Zealand Women’s Centenary Tournament, 1995: The first match of the tournament was a delight to watch, especially for the White Ferns’ fans as they seized the victory from the hands of their opponents. New Zealand women gave a target of 154 to the Australian women, which they fell short by just 1 run.
- New Zealand Women tour of Australia, 1997: The 3rd ODI of the series concluded with NZ Women winning the match by 1 wicket. Australian Women scored 167 runs, setting a run target of 168 for their opponents. New Zealand Women struggled to chase the target, however, they pulled off the game at last due to Emily Drumm’s 64.
- Women’s World Cup, 2000: The seventh edition of the Women’s World Cup was hosted by New Zealand. Aussies and White Ferns reached the final, where the New Zealand Women defeated the Australian Women by 4 runs.
- New Zealand women’s cricket team in Australia in 2004–05: Australia secured a 3-0 series sweep against New Zealand to keep their decades-long grip on the Rose Bowl. Australia women won the first match by 87 runs, the second by 7 runs, and the third by 3 wickets.
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The Rise of Modern Rivalry: 2005 to 2015
- Women’s Cricket World Cup 2005: Australia and New Zealand met for the 5th match of the World Cup 2005 at the LC de Villiers Oval. Alex Blackwell (53) and Cathryn Fitzpatrick (43), along with Karen Rolton’s bowling spell of 3/22, led to their win against NZW.
- New Zealand Women’s tour of Australia, 2006: Australia and New Zealand first faced off in a T20I match in 2006 at Brisbane. Although the match ended in a tie, this marked the beginning of their tussle in the Twenty 20 Format.
- New Zealand Women’s tour of Australia, 2007: In this T20I match played in Darwin, Australia won with a single run, which is iconic in the Trans-Tasman rivalry.
- Australia Women’s tour of New Zealand, 2008: The 3rd match at Lincoln of this series was won by New Zealand Women. Nicola Browne (59) and Sara McGlashan (41) cased the run target- 171 to claim victory for their side.
- ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, 2009: The New Zealand women and Australia women face off at the 3rd match for the ICC World T20. New Zealand claimed victory effortlessly, thanks to Aimee Watkins and Suzie Bates’ partnership of 114 runs to win the match by 9 wickets. Sian Ruck also demonstrated her bowling prowess by smashing 3 wickets in the powerplay.
- Rose Bowl [New Zealand in Australia], 2010: The astounding performance of the Trans-Tasman rivalry was seen in this match as Australia clinched victory by 10 wickets. New Zealand Women won the toss and elected to bat, however, they could amass just 162 runs. Australia women claimed the ground with Shelley Nitschke (44*) and Leah Poulton (104*) runs.
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2015 to Recent Encounters
- New Zealand Women’s tour of Australia, 2017: New Zealand won this 3-match T20I series by 2-1. While Australia won the first match by 40 runs, New Zealand claimed victory in the next two matches by 8 runs and 47 runs respectively.
- ICC Women’s World Cup, 2022: The 11th Match of the World Cup was held in Wellington between Australia and New Zealand, which resulted in AUS Women winning by 141 runs. Australia Women posed a chase of 270 runs while restricting the opponents to 128 runs. Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath, Ashleigh Gardner, and Darcie Brown were crucial contributors to Australia’s win in this match. For New Zealand, Amy Satterthwaite was the only player who battled strongly.
- Australia Women’s tour of New Zealand [Mar 2025]: Australia clean sweeped New Zealand Women in the 3-match T20I series played recently in New Zealand. In the first match, Australia won by 8 wickets, the second by 8 runs, and the third by 82 runs. Beth Mooney, Georgia Voll, Ellyse Perry, and Annabel Sutherland were key players for their side.
Key Highlights:
- World Cup Wins: The ICC Women’s World Cups have always seen Australia thin the numbers on the lists of winners, such as in the years 2005, 2013, and 2022. More often than not, the World Cups have seen a history of heavy, imbalanced competition for the two nations.
- T20 Rivalry: T20 rivalry always had these two teams facing one another in the end, and Australia had most power these recent years.
- Record & Rivalry: Australia heads poles apart in both ODIs and T20s from the New Zealanders. They have been at the very top forever in women’s cricket; however, the Kiwis have been around but have fallen short against Australia several times in major tournaments.
