he much-awaited ICC event of the year, the Women’s T20 World Cup is finally here. The 10 warm-up matches across the next four days from 28th September to 1st October 2024 are just going to be a glimpse of things to come over a 17-day period. The upcoming edition is going to be the 9th edition of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, scheduled to be played from October 3 to 20, in the United Arab Emirates.
Scotland led by skipper Kathryn Bryce was up against Pakistan led by skipper Fatima Sana in the 1st warm-up match. On the other hand, Sri Lanka led by skipper Chamari Athapaththu was up against Bangladesh led by skipper Nigar Sultana Joty in the 2nd warm-up game.
Match 1: Scotland Vs Pakistan
Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana won the toss and opted to bat first. Pakistan got off to a poor start as they lost their top four inside the first seven overs of the innings. However, a 33-run 5th-wicket partnership between Omaima Sohail and wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali took their side past the 50-run mark. The partnership led to a decent recovery for Pakistan. Katherine Fraser picked up the wicket of the wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali to provide the 5th breakthrough for Scotland.
Aliya Riaz failed to step on the accelerator before getting dismissed for almost a run-a-ball knock. Skipper Fatima Sana joined Omaima Sohail at the crease and the duo provided the much-needed momentum to the innings with a brisk 33-run partnership. The pair took their side past the 120-run mark. Rachel Slater picked up the wicket of Omaima Sohail to provide a crucial breakthrough for her side.
Pakistan eventually ended up with a total of 134/9 in their quota of overs. Omaima Sohail (30 off 29 balls), wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali (27 off 22 balls), and skipper Fatima Sana (20* off 14 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Pakistan. Skipper Kathryn Bryce (3-0-20-3), Abtaha Maqsood (4-0-21-2), Olivia Bell (3-0-16-2), and Rachel Slater (3-0-18-1) were the top performers with the ball for Scotland.
Chasing a target of 135, the Scotland openers Saskia Horley and wicket-keeper batter Sarah Bryce got their side off to a solid start with a 73-run opening partnership. The pair scored at a rate of over six runs an over. Nashra Sundhu picked up the wicket of Saskia Horley to provide the much-needed first breakthrough for Pakistan.
Skipper Kathryn Bryce joined wicket-keeper batter Sarah Bryce at the crease and the duo stitched another match-defining 59-run partnership for the 2nd wicket to take their side on the cusp of a memorable victory before skipper Kathryn Bryce was found short of her crease to provide the 2nd breakthrough for Pakistan. Scotland eventually got over the line with 8 wickets in hand and 12 balls to spare. Wicket-keeper batter Sarah Bryce (60* off 52 balls), Saskia Horley (48 off 42 balls), and skipper Kathryn Bryce (18 off 14 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Scotland. Nashra Sundhu (4-0-18-1), and Diana Baig (3-0-16-0) were the top performers with the ball for Pakistan.
Wicket-keeper batter Sarah Bryce was awarded the Player of the Match for her brilliant match-winning, unbeaten half-century (60* off 52 balls) with the bat.
Match 2: Sri Lanka Vs Bangladesh
The Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty won the toss and opted to field first. After being inserted to bat first, the Sri Lankan openers Harshitha Samarawickrama and Vishmi Gunaratne got their side off to a blazing start with a 37-run opening partnership. The pair scored at a rate of over 12 runs an over. Sultana Khatun cleaned up Vishmi Gunaratne to provide the much-needed 1st breakthrough for Bangladesh.
Sri Lanka lost a couple of wickets in quick succession. Nilakshi Silva joined Hasini Perera at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 58-run partnership for the 4th wicket to take their side past the 120-run mark. Sri Lanka eventually ended up with a total of 143/7 in their quota of 20 overs. Hasini Perera (43 off 39 balls), Nilakshika Silva (30 off 23 balls), and Harshitha Samarawickrama (29 off 27 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Sri Lanka.
Shorna Akter (3-0-19-2), Sultana Khatun (3-0-10-1), Nahida Akter (3-0-14-1), and Ritu Moni (2.4-0-18-1), were the top performers with the ball for Bangladesh. Chasing a target of 144, Bangladesh got off to a poor start as they lost their top four in nine overs into the run chase. Shorna Akter joined skipper Nigar Sultana Joty at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 21-run partnership for the 5th wicket to take their side past the 50-run mark.
Bangladesh suffered a horrible collapse as they lost their next four wickets for just 9 runs. Disha Biswas joined skipper Nigar Sultana Joty at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 40-run partnership for the 9th wicket, taking their total to the 100-run mark. Bangladesh fell 33 runs short of the target. Skipper Nigar Sultana Joty (30* off 38 balls), Disha Biswas (25 off 16 balls), and Taj Nehar (16 off 14 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Bangladesh, Sugandika Kumari (2-0-8-3), Udeshika Prabodhini (3-0-9-0), Inoshi Fernando (2-0-11-2), Inoka Ranaweera (3-1-13-1), and skipper Chamari Athapaththu (1-0-4-1) were the top performers with the ball for Sri Lanka.