Ashleigh Gardner struck a fine half-century on a day of bowlers as her team went 1-0 up.
Asked to bat first after losing the toss, the Australians managed to post a total of 138/6 in their allotted 20 overs, with Ashleigh Gardner (61) playing the stand-out knock and Meg Lanning (24), Rachael Haynes (23) providing decent support.
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The hosts lost their openers Alyssa Healy (6) and Beth Mooney (2) very early before Gardener, along with captain Lanning and Haynes, steered their ship to a respectable total.
Skipper Sophie Devine (3/18) was the pick of the bowlers in the Kiwi line-up whereas Lea Tahuhu (1/30) and Rosemary Mair (1/22) also contributed economical spells.
In the second half, the White Ferns batters struggled to put the ball off the square throughout, with only Devine (29), Suzie Bates (33) and wicketkeeper Katey Martin (21) reaching double digits as they finished 121/7, 17 runs short of victory.
The bowling line-up saved the day for the home team. Megan Schutt picked up a four-fer for just 23 runs off her four overs while Delissa Kimmince (2/24) and the rest of the attack played able support cast.
Gardner was awarded the 'Player-of-the-Match' for her innings on the day when most other batters failed after a lengthy lay-off.
The second game of the five-T20I series will be played on Sunday (September 27).