The ongoing 02 edition of the FairBreak Invitational is well in its business end and match no. 15 will see Spirit play Falcons at the Kowloon Cricket Club, Hong Kong at 11:30 AM Indian Standard Time (IST). The two played each other on 2 occasions in the inaugural edition last year and share a win each.
In the ongoing edition thus far, Spirit are seeded 2nd on the points table with 3 wins and only a defeat and have accumulated a total of 11.5 points. Falcons with a couple of wins and defeat each are seeded 4th and a crunch game, the must-win awaits them.
Squads:
Spirit – Nicola Carey (C), Gargi Bhogle, Nattaya Boochatham, Sarah Bryce, Naruemol Chaiwai, Betty Chan, Natthakan Chantam, Yasmin Daswani, Sophia Dunkley, Mahika Gaur, Ayabonga Khaka, Bismah Maroof, Shizuka Miyaji, Nensi Patel, Kerry-Anne Tomlinson
Falcons – Suzie Bates (C), Jahanara Alam, Kaia Arua, Chamari Athapaththu, Mas Elysa, Christina Gough, Anju Gurung, Mariko Hill, Marizanne Kapp, Nannapat Koncharoenkai, Marina Lamplough, Theertha Satish, Gunjan Shukla, Sornnarin Tippoch, Danni Wyatt
Players to watch out:
Nattaya Boochatham
The 36-year-old all-rounder from Thailand in 59 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) has scored 500 runs and bagged 78 wickets. In the games thus far Nattaya hasn’t got going with the bat but with the ball, she’s looked good with figures of 0/19 and 1/12.
Mahika Gaur
The 17-year-old pacer from the United Arab Emirates in 19 T20Is has bagged 9 wickets at an economy rate of 5.15 and has got the best figures of 3/21. In the tournament, she’s emerged as one of the best pacers having registered figures of 2/30, 0/11, and 2/12, and with the ball as well contributed with valuable 18 runs against Sapphires.
Suzie Bates
The 35-year-old New Zealander in 140 T20I outings has scored 3820 runs at a strike rate of 109.70 and in 84 innings has also bagged 55 wickets at an economy rate of 6.60. Bates didn’t have a good start to her campaign having had a couple of single-digit scores and now is back in touch with scores of 44 and 42*.
Sornnarin Tippoch
The 26-year-old spin all-rounder from Thailand in 60 T20I innings has scored 335 runs and has bagged 47 wickets at an economy rate of 4.04. While Tippoch hasn’t had a good run with the bat in the games thus far, the same isn’t the case with the ball as she’s registered figures of 3/13, 0/40, and 2/11.
Pitch:
The 22 yards at the Kowloon Cricket Club are lively yet well-balanced this time around as the tracks have got it all; runs for batters, and assistance for both pacers and spinners. The average score is just around 130s and many games have been low-scoring thrillers.
Weather:
With the temperature forecasted to hover around 26°C and no chances of rain spells, we will be treated to a complete game of cricket. It will be a partly cloudy overhead, light winds are expected and the humidity is forecasted at 77%.
Fantasy playing XI:
Sarah Bryce, Theertha Satish, Sophia Dunkley, Chamari Athapaththu, Marizanne Kapp, Suzie Bates, Mariko Hill, Nicola Carey, Ayabonga Khaka, Sornnarin Tippoch, Mahika Gaur
Match details:
Date – 11th April 2023
Time – 11:30 AM IST
Venue – Kowloon Cricket Club
Broadcast – In India, the tournament will be telecasted on Sony Sports and will be live-streamed on the FanCode app and website.
