New Zealand women 153 for 2 (Satterthwaite 66*, Bates 57, Poonam 1-31) beat India women 149 (Deepti 52, Peterson 4-28, Tahuhu 3-26) by eight wickets
Anna Peterson and Lea Tahuhu did most of the damage, after Amy Satterthwaite asked India to bat, picking up seven wickets between them to shoot the visitors out for 149. Suzie Bates and Satterthwaite then helmed the chase, both hitting half-centuries as New Zealand got home in 29.2 overs with eight wickets in hand.
India secured the series after winning the first two matches, but the points from this victory were useful for New Zealand, who have now moved back to the No. 2 spot ahead of India, only behind Australia, on the Women's Championship table.
It was a welcome change for New Zealand, whose bowlers had struck a grand total of three times in the first two games. Bar Deepti Sharma, none of the Indian batsmen stuck around for long enough to make a difference as Peterson returned 4 for 28 and Tahuhu 3 for 26. From then on, India were playing catch-up.
Sophie Devine dropped down the batting order and Bates had a new partner in Lauren Down, and the two looked good for more than the 22 they got together. Down was run out backing up at the non-striker's end in the seventh over when Bates's drive caught Goswami's fingers on its way to the stumps.
But Bates and Satterthwaite made sure the advantage wasn't lost with an 84-run stand for the second wicket, the runs coming in under 14 overs, till Bates fell after scoring her 25th ODI half-century. It was just a matter of knocking the runs off after that, and Satterthwaite did so in style, hitting her 20th ODI half-century, an unbeaten 74-ball 66. Devine was unbeaten on 17 at the close.
India's innings never quite gathered momentum, looking like it was headed for good things only when Deepti and Harmanpreet Kaur collaborated for the fourth wicket.
Smriti Mandhana fell first to Peterson and Jemimah Rodrigues, the other opener, followed soon after being done in by Tahuhu. Mithali Raj, who was playing her 200th ODI, didn't last too long either, and India were tottering at 39 for 3 at that stage, in the 14th over.
Deepti and Kaur steadied the innings briefly with their 48-run stand, the latter showing intent with a couple of hits to the boundary, but after she fell, becoming Peterson's second victim, there wasn't much support for Deepti. D Hemalatha and Goswami did get into double figures, but Deepti's 52 stood out in an otherwise sorry-looking batting card.
The two teams now play a series of three T20Is, the first of them in Wellington on February 6.
