ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2025 | Match 15: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand | Preview and Predictions

Strugglers Sri Lanka take on a New Zealand side fresh off their first win of the tournament, with both teams looking to find consistency. 

For Match 15 of the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, here are our preview and predictions.

ICC Women’s CWC 2025 | Match 15: SL vs NZ | 15:00 IST, October 14

Sri Lanka now have two losses from three games — having lost to England in their last game, while their game against Australia was washed out. In the two games they’ve lost, their batting has let them down in the face of very manageable targets.

The SL top order, comprising Chamari Athapaththu, Harshitha Samarawickrama, Hasini Perera, and Vishmi Gunaratne, boasts plenty of experience, and captain Athapaththu knows that they should be doing better, especially in home conditions. Batters such as Perera and Samarawickrama must be questioning their shot selection against England; both were well set and gave their wickets away. Athapaththu will also hope for some contribution from her middle-order batters, with Nilakshika Silva’s 35 against India being the highest score from the bottom seven.

With the ball, Sri Lanka’s spinners have been doing the heavy lifting, with Inoka Ranaweera being the standout bowler for the co-hosts. In home conditions, Sri Lanka’s bowling unit has been clinical up front but leaking runs at the end, which is something they would like to keep a check on, as well as be sharper in the field.

New Zealand, on the other hand, have been struggling with the bat as well, and it was only because of two fighting fifties from captain Sophie Devine and Brooke Halliday that they reached a defendable total against Bangladesh. The Kiwi top three are yet to deliver, with Devine and Halliday doing the majority of the scoring. Devine knows that there is plenty of match experience and talent in her top order and will expect the batters to get going before heading deeper into the event.

With the ball, Jess Kerr has been the standout player for the White Ferns, with her brilliance in mixing it up proving tricky for the opposition batters. Unlike many other teams in the tournament, New Zealand don’t boast a big spin attack, with Amelia Kerr being the only front-line spinner. Therefore, Devine will have to count on her medium pacers to get the job done on the slow, turning tracks of Colombo.

Both teams have been struggling and are yet to find momentum. For this game, New Zealand hold the edge thanks to a deeper and more experienced batting unit, which may turn out to be the deciding factor in what should otherwise be a close game.

Fantasy XI: Suzie Bates, Chamari Athapaththu (vc), Amelia Kerr, Harshitha Samarawickrama, Sophie Devine (c), Nilakshika Silva, Isabella Gaze (wk), Inoka Ranaweera, Udeshika Prabodhani, Jess Kerr, Lea Tahuhu

Venue: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Winners Prediction: New Zealand