Pakistan handed Ireland a loss by seven wickets as they comfortably chased down a 114-run target in their Group 2 Super Six match Potchefstroom. Ireland won the toss and decided to bat first.
Rebecca Gough was the earliest to depart owing to a run out for 7 and losing Joanna Loughran for 4 was a setback. Annabel Squires held the batting from one end as the dismissals of Georgina Dempsey, Abbi Harrison and Zara Craig for non-significant scores were counterproductive. With Siuin Woods and Freya Sargent also getting dismissed for low scores, Squires ended with 55 as Ireland finished with a dominant 113/7 on the board. Rida Aslam and Anoosha Nasir were spectacular with the ball scalping two wickets apiece and Mahnoor Aftab and Areesha Noor picking a wicket each.
Pakistan’s run chase was not without hiccups as Shawaal Zulfiqar and Eyman Fatima gave a good start but their dismissals in the 5th over and after the powerplay respectively for scores of 18 and 25 respectively did not augur well for Pakistan. However, a crucial partnership stitched by Warda Yousaf who remained unbeaten on 24 and Syeda Aroob Shah for a well-played 35 sealed the deal for Pakistan in 17.3 overs. Georgia Dempsey, Freya Sargent and Zara Craig were among the wickets with their solitary wickets but it was not enough to restrict the Pakistani batting.
Brief Scores: IRE- 113/7 (A Squires 55, Z Craig 17; A Nasir 2/17, R Aslam 2/26) lost to PAK- 117/3 (SA Shah 35, E Fatima 25; Z Craig 1/17, F Sargent 1/24) by 7 wickets and 15 balls remaining
🇵🇰 Pakistan U19 won by 7 wickets
🇮🇪 Ireland U19: 113-7 (20)
Annabelle Squires: 55* (52)
Zara Craig: 17 (13)
Anosha Nasir 2-17🇵🇰 Pakistan U19: 117-3 (17.3)
Aroob Shah: 35 (25)
Eyman Fatima: 25 (17)
Zara Craig 1-17#CricketTwitter #U19T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/YQkqqTmoxT— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) January 23, 2023
I am a first year postgraduate student pursuing a MA in Media and Communication Studies at Christ University, Bengaluru. I am a podcaster, blogger and an avid cricket fan. When not glued to cricket matches, you can find me submerged in books and thinking about cricket all the time.