Maiden glory on the line

There will be a first-time winner of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup when New Zealand play South Africa in the final in Dubai tonight.

Sophie Devine's New Zealand completed a narrow win over West Indies in Sharjah on Friday to seal their place in the summit clash, scheduled for 8:00pm (Bangladesh time) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, where they will hope to lift the trophy for the first time.

Their opponents South Africa defeated six-time champions Australia in the first semi-final on Thursday, and will be looking to go one better than the last edition, when they were losing finalists on home soil.

This will be just the second time that the Proteas have reached the final of a major tournament, following their run in 2023, which ended with a 19-run loss to Australia in Cape Town.

For the White Ferns, they are set for a first appearance in a T20 World Cup final in 14 years. The Kiwis were losing finalists in each of the first two editions of the tournament, beaten by England in 2009 and Australia in 2010.

Only three teams have ever won the Women's T20 World Cup across its eight previous editions.

England won the inaugural event on home soil at Lord's, and West Indies triumphed at Eden Gardens in 2016, whereas beaten semi-finalists Australia have won the other six titles, including at each of the three previous tournaments.

Neither New Zealand nor South Africa have won a T20 World Cup title across the men's and women's tournaments.