Winning the toss and electing to bowl first at Canberra on Wednesday, Thailand got off to a wonderful start as the bowlers sent the English opening pair of Amy Jones and Danielle Wyatt packing, who did not bother troubling the scorers.
Natalie Sciver, fresh from a fluent half-century in the previous game against South Africa, carried on from where she had left, as she joined hands with skipper Heather Knight to keep the Thai bowlers at bay. Sciver (59 not out) and Knight (108 not out) put their heads down and with dollops of hard work brought out the sinking ship to the shore. Sciver smashed eight boundaries, playing second fiddle to Knight who muscled 13 smooth hits to the fence and four ferocious ones over it. After getting rid of the opening pair inside two overs, the Thai bowlers had their tails up however the experienced batting duo of Sciver and Knight wreaked havoc as they hit them all around the park. Nattaya Boochatham (1-18) and Soraya Latah (1-27) were the only wicket-takers for Thailand. At the end of the innings, England amassed a daunting 176-2 in 20 overs.
England’s 176* today is the HIGHEST EVER PARTNERSHIP in Women’s T20 World Cup. 🙌😍#T20WorldCup | #WT20WC | #HeatherKnight | #ENGvTHA pic.twitter.com/2eqGDRFnNU
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) February 26, 2020
In reply, Thailand tried to fight hard, however, the Thai batters were outperformed by the English bowlers who were ruthless with their disciplined lines and lengths. Anya Shrubsole was the pick of the bowlers scalping 3-21 in her four overs. She received good support from all-rounder Sciver (2-5), who early in the day, contributed beautifully with the bat. Slow left-arm bowler picked up the important wicket of opening bat Nattakan Chantam (32), who was the top scorer for Thailand, thus putting an end to Thai hopes in the match. England reduced Thailand to a paltry 78-7 in 20 overs, winning the match by a huge margin of 98 runs.
With this win, England has managed to open their account with two points. They have won one and lost one so far. On the other hand, Thailand is yet to pocket a win, as they have lost two out of two.
England’s 98 Run Victory is the biggest Margin Win in @T20WorldCup history so far. The previous bests are
👉94 Runs Victory for Australia vs Pakistan (2014)
👉93 Runs Victory for New Zealand vs Ireland (2016)
👉86 Runs Victory for South Africa vs Ireland (2014)#WT20 #ENGvTHA pic.twitter.com/xultadVDoI
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) February 26, 2020
England will play its third match against Pakistan on Friday at the same venue, while Thailand will also play at the same venue on the same day, but against South Africa.
I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.