On a pitch that showed some turn and variable bounce due to overnight showers, Mithali used all her experience to build a foundation for India. She combined with Smriti Mandhana to post a 67-run opening partnership, of which Mandhana scored 33. The duo helped India set the base for a safe score, but the India innings lost some momentum towards the end, losing their last four wickets for 27 runs, finishing at 145 for six.
After Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues joined Mithali in a 40-run partnership, but no other batter in the top six got into double figures. Mithali reached her fifty in the 18th over, finishing on 51, making her the first woman to score seven T20I fifties in a calendar year. The eventual win, their third in the tournament, which tied them with Australia on six points, but behind on net run-rate, gave India their seventh consecutive T20I win, their longest streak in the format.
There was little joy in Ireland’s chase, which ended on 93 for eight, as only two batters got past single figures, strangled by the slowness of the pitch and the Indian spinners. Wickets fell regularly and then in a heap, as Isobel Joyce top scored with 33. Clare Shillington set a historic mark for Ireland on the way to her 23, becoming the first Irish batter to score more than 1000 T20I runs.
Indian vice-captain Smriti Mandhana said: “Well, it means a lot (to make the semis) because after the Asia Cup final, a lot of things happened back home. Everyone had actually thought that we wouldn't even make it to the semi-finals because we did not even win the Asia Cup.
“But I guess everyone was motivated enough after the Asia Cup that this time, this is the time everyone will be watching, and we have to prove our point. In 2017 we qualified for the final, but that can’t be just a one-off.”
Ireland’s Isobel Joyce said: “If you look at the top Indian players, they play against top bowlers all the time. They have a plan against Ellyse Perry, against all the top bowlers, because they've played them a number of times each year.
“Today’s the first time I've played against any of those bowlers in a couple of years. I'm trying to think on my feet, and suddenly it's four or five balls into a spell and a new bowler comes on. That's really where the difficulty lies personally. It's not the nerves.”
New Zealand put up a team effort with the bat to score 144 for seven, with their rearranged top four scoring 122 of those runs. Sophie Devine retuned to open the batting with Suzie Bates, and the two put on 59 for the first wicket with a mix of aggression and good running. Bates top scored with 35, and Devine was close behind with 32.
Amy Satterthwaite and the in-form Katie Martin then added 37 for the fourth wicket, until both were dismissed in a series that saw four wickets fall for 13 runs in eight balls across the last two overs of the innings. The late slump meant that New Zealand scored only 70 in their last 10 overs, failing to double their halfway score.
In reply, Javeria gave them a scare, following up her career best 74 not out in the last game with a quick-fire 36 off just 23 balls. That left Pakistan needing just 96 runs in the remaining 84 balls with eight wickets in hand. But she received no support from the other end, only one other regular batter getting into double figures. The spin duo of Jess Watkin and Amelia Kerr finished with six wickets between them, bowling Pakistan out for 90 in exactly 18 overs.
New Zealand’s Jess Watkin, who took three wickets, said: “You never know what this wicket is going to do, whether it's going to turn or stay low, so yeah, it's real nice to bowl with.
“We didn’t finish well with the bat, but I think we just kind of put it behind us and just focused on our bowling and really went hard out there. I think when we got (Nida) Dar out, I think we definitely had a chance then, that was the turning point.”
Javeria Khan of Pakistan looks on from the dugout during the ICC Women's World T20 2018 match between New Zealand and Pakistan at Guyana National Stadium on November 15, 2018 in Providence, Guyana. Javeria Khan of Pakistan looks on from the dugout during the ICC Women's World T20 2018 match between New Zealand and Pakistan at Guyana National Stadium on November 15, 2018 in Providence, Guyana. Pakistan captain Javeria Khan said: “We have worked a lot on the batting since last year. The coach Mark Coles has been giving us clear plans and the girls have responded well. He brings a new thinking and a new culture to the dressing room.
Scores in brief
New Zealand: 144-6, 20 overs (Suzie Bates 35, Sophie Devine 32; Aliya Riaz 2-29, Sana Mir 2-35)Pakistan: 90 all out in 18 overs (Javeria Khan 36; Jess Watkin 3-9, Amelia Kerr 3-21) Player of the Match: Jess Watkin
The Windies maintained their spotless record against South Africa in ICC Women’s World T20s, applying sustained pressure with the ball and in the field to steal a 31-run win. Their winning margin was bloated by a late collapse that saw South Africa lose their last five wickets for just one run.
South Africa were looking steady at 41 for 1 after 10 overs chasing the Windies total of 107, when two outstanding pieces of fielding –including one direct hit from point by Deandra Dotttin- brought the holders back into the game. Taylor then brought herself on and bowled her four overs on the trot, taking a wicket in each of them. From 48 for one, South Africa slipped to 64 for five through a combination of pressure and panic, eventually bowled out for 76.
Taylor registered career best figures of 4 for 12, claiming Player of the Match, a medal that seemed headed into Shabnim Ismail’s pocket for a brilliant opening spell. Ismail (3 for twelve) removed the
Windies’ most destructive batters in her first twelve balls, claiming her second consecutive three-wicket haul. A 45-run partnership between Kycia Knight (32) and Natasha McLean (28) rescued the Windies, giving them something to defend.
Windies captain and Player of the Match Stafanie Taylor said: “Deandra, I think her position at point, backward point is pretty much fixed. When she's not bowling, that's where she's supposed to go, because she's magnificent. She's fantastic. She gets around pretty quickly.
“And batters fear her when she has the ball in her hand or when she's going towards the ball. No one wants to take a run. So, when Dane got run out, I think she was caught off-guard, but it turned the match in our favour.”
Scores in brief: Windies: 107-7, 20 overs (Kycia Knight 32, Natasha McLean 28; Shabnim Ismail 3-12, Dane van Neikerk 2-8) South Africa: 76 all out in 18.4 overs (Marizanne Kapp 26, Lizelle Lee 24; Stafanie Taylor 4-12)
Player of the match: Stafanie Taylor
Sri Lanka v Bangladesh:
Bangladesh missed out on their best chance of ensuring automatic qualification for the next edition of the tournament as their batting disintegrated in a chase of 98. Only two batters made it into double figures, as the batters undid some fine work from the bowlers, in particular Jahanara Alam.
Shashikala Siriwardene took two wickets for Sri Lanka after top scoring with the bat, and skipper Chamari Athapaththu took three after failing. But the dents in Bangladesh’s chase were made by the left arm swing of Udeshika Prabhodani, who took two wickets in her first over. Then the spinners shared the spoils, bowling 75 dots in the innings as Bangladesh never recovered from those early blows.
Earlier, Jahanara Alam’s three wickets were the highlight of a bowling effort that seemed to have done enough. Bangladesh strangled the Sri Lanka top order, until a 31-run partnership off 20 balls between Siriwardene and Nilakshi de Silva took them close to a hundred. A slow outfield and helpful conditions for the bowlers meant that those runs were enough.
Pakistan scored their highest ever total in the ICC Women’s World T20 on the way to a thumping of Ireland, giving themselves the best chance of directly qualifying for the next edition of the tournament. Javeria Khan’s unbeaten 74 formed the spine of their total, the next highest score being 21. It was the highest score by any Pakistan batter in T20Is, and her first fifty in 16 innings.
Lucy O’Reilly bowled well for Ireland, and was rewarded with three late wickets. But the damage was done by then; in the chase, only two of Ireland’s batters got into double figures, as the Pakistan spinners shared seven of the nine wickets to fall. Ireland’s challenge ended on 101 for nine, as did their best chance of automatic qualification for the ICC Women’s World T20 2020.
Pakistan’s Nashra Sandhu said: “We didn't perform too well in the previous matches, but today we had to do well because if we lost this match we couldn't qualify (directly). We would have to qualify for the T20 World Cup all over again. It was a crucial match for us to win, so we put all our efforts into winning this match.”
Scores in brief:
Pakistan: 139-6, 20 overs (Javeria Khan 74 not out, Ayesha Zafar 21; Lucy O’Reilly 3-19)Ireland: 101-9 in 20 overs (Isobel Joyce 30, Clare Shillington 27; Nashra Sandhu 2-8, Aliya Riaz 2-16, Sana Mir 2-20, Aiman Anwer 2-25)
Australia v New Zealand:
Australia posted a challenging 153 for seven on the back of a 71-run opening partnership between Healy and Beth Mooney, their fourth in a row. After Healy was dismissed for 53 off 38 balls in the 13th over, New Zealand did tie down the scoring rate, helped by Leigh Kasperek’s three wickets.
Kasperek became the second fastest woman to take 50 T20I wickets in the process, getting to the landmark in her 29th game. At the halfway stage New Zealand were in with a chance, although they needed a record score to win. But just as in the game against India, Suzie Bates was left to play a lone hand as wickets fell around her.
Bates scored 48 and forged a 66-run fourth-wicket partnership with Katie Martin, but once that was broken by Georgia Wareham, New Zealand collapsed to 120 all out in the 18th over, handing Australia a 33-run win.
Scores in brief:
Australia: 153-7, 20 overs (Alyssa Healy 53, Rachael Haynes 29 not out, Beth Mooney 26; Leigh Kasperek 3-25, Sophie Devine 2-37)
New Zealand: 120 all out in17.3 overs (Suzie Bates 48, Katie martin 24; Megan Schutt 3-12, Sophie Mloineux 2-20, Delissa Kimmince 2-24)
ICC World Twenty20 (WT20) defending champions, West Indies, face South Africa today in a crucial group stage match that could determine, even earlier than expected, who advances to the semi-finals come November 22 in Antigua.
The match bowls off at 7.20 pm local time from the Darren Sammy Stadium in Gros Islet, St Lucia, with both teams on two points after victories in their first match. England top the table with three points from two games, but with rain still a looming threat, every game has to be treated as a decider, as the top two aim to progress to the knockouts.
The Windies opened proceedings with an exhilarating bowling performance by dismantling Bangladesh for a tournament-low 46 on the heels of Deandra Dottin’s record-breaking five for five, which made her the first T20 woman with a century and a five-for in the game.
However, Stafanie Taylor’s squad limped to 106 for eight batting first, which the skipper deemed as a major hiccup in their ambitions. Only three batsmen got into double figures via Taylor (29), Kycia Knight (32) and powerhouse Natasha McLean (11), which Taylor hopes will change.
CWI Press Release: St John’s, ANTIGUA – When the WINDIES Men line up against Bangladesh in the upcoming 2 Tests, 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is series, WINDIES will have a winning record since these two teams have been playing each other.
WINDIES lead the Test contest 10 – 2; ODIs 20 -9 but are tied 4 matches a piece in the T20Is battle. The last time the teams met, WINDIES took the Test series 3-0; but lost both the ODIs and T20Is series 1-2 respectively.
The WINDIES will be after more positive results for this encounter.
The WINDIES will also be without Test and ODI Captain, Jason Holder who has a partial thickness tear of the subscapularis tendon in his shoulder and will undergo physiotherapy and rehabilitation in Barbados. Sitting Vice Captain, Kraigg Brathwaite will lead the team in his absence.
