As the team prepares for the upcoming Women’s World Cup 2022, we get to witness several women squads touring several countries and competing in multi-format series. The Thailand Women’s tour in Zimbabwe from 18th August to 31st August comprised of four unofficial One Day matches and then three T20Is. All matches were played at the Takashinga Sports Club in Harare. Let’s take a quick look at what action went down in the series.
The first One Day began on August 18 with the toss in favour of the Zimbabwe Women who elected to field first. The first inning saw the Zimbabwe bowlers performing well. Two wickets were picked up by Josephine Nkomo. The Thai batswomen probably had not adjusted to the new field and conditions as only Nannapat Koncharoenkai, Captain Nareumol Chaiwai, and Chanida Sutthiruang were the only considerable scorers. Due to the failure of the rest of the batters, Thailand set a chasable target of 199 runs at a loss of 4 wickets for the Zimbabwe opponents. The Zimbabwe women easily covered the target within 45 overs at a loss of 3 wickets and won the opening match. Skipper Mary-Anne Musonda and all-rounder Josephine Nkomo displayed a good partnership.
The second One Day saw the toss in favour of the Thai Women who chose to bat first. Despite the opening pair breaking up due to the elimination of one of the batters, the rest of them started the match well. Nattaya Boochatham, Suleeporn Laomi, and Nattakan Chantam did a commendable job by grabbing a decent amount of runs for the team. Unfortunately, they could not last long and as wickets kept getting picked, the scoring pace also slowed down. Thailand was all-out at a score of 229 runs. Excellent bowling once again showcased by Josephine Nkomo who alone scalped 5 wickets. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a good day for the batters as only Captain Musonda managed to score a half-century. The rest could not even last till a 40-run score. At a score of 207 runs, the entire Zimbabwe batting line-up too was eliminated. Outstanding bowling from Boochatham who picked 5 wickets solely. The Thai women won this clash.
The third One Day began with the Zimbabwe Women winning the toss and elected to field first once again. Among the entire Thai batting line-up, only Captain Nareumol Chaiwai scored the first century in the series. The rest of her teammates could not even score 30 runs before getting eliminated. The opening pair along with Wongpaka Liengprasert who was third in line were eliminated at nil. Once again, an easy target for the Zimbabwe women. Once again all-rounder Nkomo had executed her stunning bowling skills and picked 3 wickets. In the second inning, the Zimbabwe women easily caught up with the target within 44 overs at a loss of 5 wickets. A commendable partnership from Modester Mupachikwa and Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano. Zimbabwe took another win and a lead in the series.
In the fourth One Day, the Zimbabwe women once again won the toss but decided to bat first this time. Though the opening partnership was not successful, the Zimbabwe batters managed to score a chasable target of 212 runs at a loss of 8 wickets. Tiripano and Precious Marange contributed the highest with 58 and 66 runs respectively. Thai bowler Nattaya once again took the spotlight by picking the 3 wickets for her team. The Thai batters had a decent opening in the second inning and the rest of the line-up also pieced a decent amount of runs to the total score which helped them chase the target within 47 overs. Zimbabwe bowlers Nomvelo Sibanda and Christabel Chatonzwa picked 2 wickets each however, the Thai women had clearly dominated in this match and took the victory.
Now, with the scores tied at the end of the 4 Unofficial One Day, the Thailand team went on to win two out of the three T20Is.
🇹🇭 SEAL THE SERIES!
Thailand Women’s Cricket Team beat Zimbabwe 2-1 in the T20I Series held at Harare.
Congratulations @ThailandCricket 🥳👏#ZIMvTHA pic.twitter.com/gs58Mv06Gz
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) August 30, 2021
1st T20I – Zimbabwe Won by 1 Wicket
The first T20I started with the Zimbabwe Women winning the toss as well as the match. Opting to be the target setters, opener Modester Mupachikwa and Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano contributed the highest score of 29 and 30 runs respectively. Unfortunately, a majority of the rest of the line-up could not even reach a two-digit score and three of the batters were eliminated at a nil score. Hence, the target of 107 runs with the entire batting line being eliminated was an easy chase for the Thai batters. This time too Boochatham, as well as Onnicha Kamchomphu, took 3 wickets each. However, the Thai squad was in for a surprise as the Zimbabwe bowlers shouldered responsibility and snatched away the easy victory from Thailand’s palms. Except Koncharoenkai and Sutthiruang who lasted till the end, everyone was eliminated at a single-digit score. Zimbabwe had proven that they could deal effectively in whatever pressure situation they faced.
2nd T20I – Thailand Won by 53 Runs
The second T20I’s toss was won by Thailand who also clearly dominated the opponent and showcased a commendable victory. They started with a blast, setting an astounding 154 run score at the loss of 3 wickets. Following this, in the second inning, the Thai team once again showed an astounding fielding performance by eliminating the entire Zimbabwe batting line-up at a 101 score. Boochatham alone picked 4 wickets and became Player of the Match. It was not a good day for the Zimbabwe team.
3rd T20I – Thailand Won by 27 Runs
The third T20I, also the decider match of the series began on 30th August. The toss was won by Thailand who chose to bat first. Just like the previous day, the Thai batters once again showcased a commendable performance, setting a good target of 134 runs for Zimbabwe at a loss of 5 wickets. Zimbabwe’s Loren Tshuma did a good job by picking 3 wickets. In the second inning, Boochatham once again eliminated three batters from Zimbabwe. The rest of the bowlers as well did not let the Zimbabwe batting line cross an individual score of 30 runs. Keeping the pressure on till the very end, the Thailand Women claimed their victory over the Zimbabwe squad in the match as well as the series.
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