Sophie Devine: Pakistan match is our final

New Zealand are all but out of contention for the semi-finals but want to put on a performance they can be "proud" in front of a big crowd in Christchurch

New Zealand captain Sophie Devine is looking to bow out of the 2022 Women's World Cup on a high, labelling her side's upcoming clash with Pakistan in Christchurch as "our final".

The White Ferns currently sit sixth in the table with four points and require something of a mathematical miracle to reach the last four. With a net run rate of -0.229, they would need to demolish Pakistan and then hope Bangladesh, who have won just one match, and South Africa can thrash England and India – both of whom have run rates in excess of 0.7.

With that in mind, Devine just wants her side to put on a performance they can be "proud" of and shine in front of a capacity crowd following the lifting of Covid restrictions in New Zealand earlier this week.

"We've got to be realistic about it," Devine said. "I don't know the exact numbers, but we do know that this is likely our final game and it's how we want to play it.

"Bob [Carter] mentioned it in training earlier today that [Saturday] is our final. It's obviously not the final we thought we would be playing in, but we've still got so much passion and pride that we want to make sure that we go out tomorrow and really put on a performance we're certainly proud of, but also all our friends, family and the rest of New Zealand are hopefully really proud of as well.

^{Lea Tahuhu will not feature for New Zealand [Andy Jackson/Getty Images]}

"We've played good cricket in patches, but we haven't been able to come out on top, so for us, Saturday is our real focus. We want to go out and finish strongly."

Reflecting on the tournament, Devine pinpointed her side's batting as the problem area. The tournament hosts lost to West Indies by just three runs when chasing 259, were bowled out for 128 by Australia and set targets of just 228 and 203 against South Africa and England, respectively.

"We haven't scored enough runs," she said. "There's been a number of games where if we'd have scored 20-30 more runs, the result would have been a little easier to come by. Reflections and reviews will happen, but certainly run-scoring has been an issue for us."

Injuries have also been an issue for New Zealand during the tournament, with middle-order batter Lauren Down suffering a fractured thumb just days before the opening match and Devine (back) and senior pacer Lea Tahuhu (hamstring) both forced out of the match against England.

^{Pakistan celebrate defeating West Indies [Michael Bradley/Getty Images]}

Devine is expected to be fit to face Pakistan, but Tahuhu is unavailable, meaning Hannah Rowe and spinners Frankie Mackay and Amelia Kerr will have to step up to lead the attack.

Pakistan, meanwhile, are guaranteed to return home on a high after ending their 13-year World Cup losing streak with an eight-wicket win over West Indies. And having once again experienced the highs of victory, captain Bismah Maroof is confident her side can beat anyone.

"[South Africa and Bangladesh] were very close games which we should have won and the mistakes we made – the key moments we are losing and not crossing the line," she said. "But the West Indies win gave us the confidence that we can do it and we can beat any team."

And despite losing 12 of their 13 encounters with New Zealand, Maroof's side did win the most recent meeting between the two sides, triumphing by five wickets in Sharjah in 2017 – could another upset be on the cards?