Australia thrash Kiwis with dominant bowling display

Women's T20 World Cup, Group A, Sharjah

Australia 148-8 (20 overs): Mooney 40 (32); Kerr 4-26

New Zealand 88 (19.2 overs): Schutt 3-3, Sutherland 3-21

Australia won by 60 runs.

Scorecard. Table

Megan Schutt claimed 3-3 as Australia brushed aside New Zealand with a dominant bowling display to move top of Group A at the Women's T20 World Cup.

Both sides had won their opening match and the Kiwis had a glimmer of hope on a slow pitch in Sharjah after they restricted the defending champions to 148-8.

Beth Mooney's 40 provided the backbone of Australia's total, while Ellyse Perry chipped in with 30 as New Zealand leg-spinner Amelia Kerr claimed an impressive 4-26.

Kerr, who hit 29, spearheaded New Zealand's response with the bat as she and the experienced Suzie Bates took them to 54-1 at the halfway point in their reply.

However, when Bates was bowled by Sophie Molineux with the first ball after drinks, it started the rot for the White Ferns, who lost nine wickets for 34 runs.

Schutt finished with scarcely-believable figures off 3.2 overs, while all-rounder Annabel Sutherland blew away the middle order en route to 3-21.

Australia are top of Group A on four points, with New Zealand two points behind in third.

Australia are the all-conquering defending champions, strongly tipped to win their seventh T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

This was their 13th consecutive victory in World Cup matches - the longest streak of any team in the tournament's history.

Other teams searching for any signs of weakness during their seemingly inevitable march to the semi-finals will have little to go on with regards to their display in the field.

The Aussies were typically ruthless with the ball as Schutt bowled with pace, aggression and no lack of skill finding movement off the pitch and through the air.

She was simply unplayable at times.

However, there were a few potential chinks in Australia's armour with regards to their batting.

They had the foundations in place for a huge total at 109-2 in the 14th over, but failed to accelerate and could only add another 39 runs for the loss of six wickets.

New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine squeezed Australia's middle order with smart bowling changes on a pitch that batters needed time to get themselves in on.

Kerr snaffled two wickets in two balls as she bowled both Ellyse Perry and Grace Harris through the gate with her googly - something England's Sarah Glenn may have watched with interest.

Equally, Brooke Halliday's floated right-arm deliveries went unpunished by Australia, who failed to dispatch slow full tosses to the boundary.

Nevertheless, the Australia juggernaut will still take some stopping.