Alice Capsey and Nat Sciver-Brunt to the rescue with the bat, before the spinners came to the fore to give England the T20I series victory.
The England Women’s team led by skipper Heather Knight clinched a comprehensive 53-run victory in the 1st T20I. Wicket-keeper batter Amy Jones was awarded the Player of the Match.
England skipper Heather Knight won the toss and opted to bat first. The England openers got off to a steady start before they lost the wicket of Danielle Wyatt in the 3rd over of the innings. Waheeda Akhtar provided the 1st breakthrough for Pakistan. Alice Capsey joined Maia Bouchier at the crease and the duo stitched a crucial 49-run partnership for the 2nd wicket. The home side lost a couple of wickets in quick succession and found themselves at 76/3 in the 12th over of the innings.
Skipper Heather Knight joined Nat Sciver-Brunt at the crease and the duo stitched another crucial 27-run partnership for the 4th wicket before Sadia Iqbal picked up the wicket of Nat Sciver-Brunt to provide the 4th breakthrough for her side. England eventually ended up with a total of 144/6 in their quota of overs. Nat Sciver-Brunt (31 off 21 balls), Alice Capsey (31 off 33 balls), and Maia Bouchier (30 off 26 balls) were the top performers with the bat for England.
Skipper Nida Dar (4-0-33-2), Sadia Iqbal (4-0-20-1), and Diana Baig (4-0-24-1) were the top performers with the ball for Pakistan. Chasing a target of 145, Pakistan got off to a poor start as they lost a couple of wickets in the 3rd over of the run chase. Lauren Bell provided both breakthroughs for England. Wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali joined Sidra Amin at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 30-run partnership for the 3rd wicket before Sophie Ecclestone picked up the wicket of the wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali to provide the 3rd breakthrough for her side.
The visitors, Pakistan suffered a horrible collapse as they were eventually bundled out for 79 with 25 balls to spare. They lost their last seven wickets for just 40 runs, as a result, falling short of the target by 65 runs. Aliya Riaz (19 off 17 balls), wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali (18 off 12 balls), and Sidra Amin (11 off 16 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Pakistan. Sophie Ecclestone (2.5-0-11-3), Sarah Glenn (3-0-10-2), Lauren Bell (3-0-20-2), and Alice Capsey (2-0-4-2) were the top performers with the ball for England.
Alice Capsey was awarded the Player of the Match for her brilliant all-round performance, scoring (31 off 33 balls) with the bat and returning with brilliant match figures (2-0-4-2) with the ball. She played a crucial role in helping England clinch a thumping 65-run victory in the 2nd T20I to seal the three-match T20I series. The 3rd and final T20I of the series will be played at Leeds on 19th May 2024 from 5:30 PM IST.a
