England Women meet New Zealand Women in the 28th match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, staged at Kennington Oval on Saturday 27 June. The game starts at 6:30 pm local time, and our preview expects a lively contest between two sides who both have plenty of attacking options.
England’s possible XI is built around Amy Jones, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Sophia Dunkley, Alice Capsey and Heather Knight in the top and middle order, with Freya Kemp and Dani Gibson adding all-round depth. Sophie Ecclestone, Charlie Dean and Linsey Smith give the attack spin options, while Lauren Bell leads the seam department. The wider squad is captained by Nat Sciver-Brunt and also includes Tilly Corteen-Coleman, Lauren Filer and Issy Wong.
New Zealand’s likely side features Georgia Plimmer, Amelia Kerr, Sophie Devine and Brooke Halliday, with Maddy Green and Izzy Sharp adding power. Jess Kerr, Nensi Patel, Rosemary Mair and Bree Illing form a balanced bowling group, and Suzie Bates, Lea Tahuhu and Polly Inglis are among the other names in their squad. Our view is that they have enough hitting to stay in the game, especially if they are chasing, but England’s batting depth makes them the narrow favourites. A first-innings target of 160 or more would put real pressure on any chase.
