Cricket: Melissa Hansen 'rapt' to represent

CHALLENGE: Melissa Hansen put in some good performances.

The end result wasn't what she wanted but Wairarapa College student Melissa Hansen was "absolutely rapt" with the experience of representing the New Zealand under-20 women's team at the World Cup indoor cricket tournament in the Hutt last week.

The Kiwis finished in the runners-up spot after being beaten by arch rivals Australia in a final which Hansen said was more closely contested than the scoreline of 155-111 might suggest.

"We were a little behind on the scoreboard going into the last batting partnership and that meant our girls had to push harder and take a few risks. And that meant the number of outs were more than they would normally be."

Their grand final clash was the fourth between New Zealand and Australia at the tourney and, while the Aussies won the big one, the home team beat them twice, both by the slender margin of three runs.

Those wins were special in that New Zealand had never beaten Australia before in this age group and, what's more, they were the only team in the whole tournament to have a victory over Australia, who were in a class of their own in all other divisions.

"The Aussie coach reckoned their current squad was as strong as they had ever had so I guess we didn't too badly, did we?" said Hansen, who was one of the star acts for New Zealand in the decider. She and Makaylah Mason-Jones put on 37 runs in the second partnership with Hansen's 23 individual runs being second only to skipper Natasha Van Tilburg's 24.

A similar state of affairs had existed in New Zealand's 117-87 defeat of England in the semifinals with Van Tilburg topping the individual run list there with 33 and Hansen second with 29.

Asked to reflect on her performances through the tourney, the 18-year-old Hansen was typically reticent to talk herself up but admitted things had gone "pretty well" for her with bat and ball.

"I was a bit nervous going into the first couple of games but I got over that and just focused on sticking with our game plans," she said. "It was a good challenge, I really enjoyed it."

On the bowling front, Hansen was often given the responsibility of fronting up to the last two opposition batters, a high pressure situation which placed huge emphasis on accuracy. "Wides are an absolute no-no then, if you don't bowl straight you are in trouble."

Now the World Cup has ended, Hansen has turned her attention to the outdoor game. This Saturday, she will play for Johnsonville in the opening round of matches in the Wellington senior women's competition, a grade in which she made such an impression last season that she was awarded the Trish McKelvey Medal as the Best and Fairest Player. And then on Sunday, Hansen will represent the Central Hinds in a representative fixture against Taranaki, hoping to continue the form which made her an integral part of that side in 2013.