Can New Zealand bounce back to claim a conciliatory win?

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Maryam Mallick
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Lauren Down's century helps the White Ferns win over GG XI

New Zealand team. ©Twitter/White Ferns

With the Rose Bowl series already decided, the third match gives the White Ferns an opportunity to claim a conciliatory win. Australia have taken an unassailable two-nil lead and will be looking to seal their cricketing season with a whitewash against their trans-Tasman rivals, making it a fitting end to what has been a remarkable period for the team in green and gold.



Apart from that, ICC Women's Championship points are also to play for. Australia are clear on the top of the ladder now, while New Zealand have slipped to third place.



 



Players to Watch Out for 



Meg Lanning (Australia)



It has been an unusually quiet series for the Australian skipper. The third ranked ODI batter has registered single-digit scores of six and three so far, but her teammates are tipping she'll fire in the series finale. Lanning came into the series on the back of some good form, scoring 389 runs at 48.62 in the WBBL. Following that, she registered a century for her state Victoria, in the final round of the WNCL.



Now, in the final match of the international season for Australia, Lanning is expected to tee off in front of her home crowd at Junction Oval. Australian wicketkeeper-batter Alyssa Healy told cricket.com.au, "It's a little scary when Meg goes quiet. You're never quite sure what's going to be around the corner."



Suzie Bates (New Zealand)



The equally prolific Bates has had a similar series to Lanning. The White Ferns veteran has also had a lean run with the bat, registering scores of eight and 11 thus far. However, in the White Ferns recent clash against the Governor General's XI, Bates looked to have found form, scoring 43 runs off 50 deliveries. This looks to be a positive sign for the tourists, who have struggled to get strong partnerships going at the start of their innings.



 



Who Said What



It would be very nice to cap off the summer with a big crowd, playing on the weekend... it would be nice to see a heap of people down there supporting their local heroes. We've got Meg Lanning sitting in there and the likes of Georgia Wareham as well. - Australia wicketkeeper-batter Alyssa Healy



(We want to) just show what we can produce. We've shown it in patches and we've talked all series about how we have to produce quality performances against a quality side in Australia to beat them, and I think we've been close in phases and just not been able to finish it off. So our the goal would certainly be to play for a lot of pride and showing the performances we can produce. - New Zealand skipper, Amy Satterthwaite



 



Probable XI



Australia: Alyssa Healy (wk), Rachael Haynes (vc), Meg Lanning (c), Ellyse Perry, Beth Mooney, Ashleigh Gardner, Elyse Villani, Nicola Carey (subject to fitness), Jess Jonassen, Georgia Wareham, Megan Schutt



New Zealand: Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine, Lauren Down, Amy Satterthwaite (c), Katey Martin (wk), Katie Perkins, Amelia Kerr, Anna Peterson, Hayley Jensen, Lea Tahuhu, Rosemary Mair
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