The 2022 GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Women’s Gulf Cup was played in Oman between March 20 and March 26. This was the fourth edition of the tournament. Six teams, namely, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates (UAE) participated in the competition that saw 15 matches being played.
During this tournament, Bahrain and Kuwait played their first-ever T20I. Each of the five teams played one match against the rest of the five teams, which means that every team played five matches. At the end of the tournament, the team that had the maximum points was declared as the winner. With 10 points, UAE clinched the championship.
UAE beat Qatar by 8 Wickets
UAE played their first match against Qatar, which they won comfortably by eight wickets. Chasing a modest score of 76, UAE completed the formalities in just eight overs. Khushi Sharma won the player of the match for her match-winning bowling performance of 4-4 in three overs. UAE’s opening batter muscled a 29-ball 50 to lead the run chase.
UAE beat Kuwait by 73 Runs
The Chaya Mughal led side played their second match against Kuwait. Batting first, UAE piled up a fighting score of 2-158 in 20 overs and later reduced Kuwait to a paltry 8-85, winning the match by 73 runs. Egodage bagged the player of the match for her brilliant batting performance of 92 not out off 74 balls.
UAE beat Oman by 109 Runs
The third match for UAE was against the hosts Oman. Picking up from where they had left in the last match against Kuwait, UAE plundered 4-204 in 20 overs, thanks to opening batter Esha Oza, who top scored with a 31-ball 67. In reply, the hosts could only manage to score 7-95, losing the match by a massive margin of 109 runs.
UAE beat Saudi Arabia by 10 Wickets
Riding on three wins on the trot, UAE played their penultimate match against Saudi Arabia. UAE handed a crushing defeat to Saudi Arabia as the former bowled out the latter for just 25 runs in 12.3 overs. Lavanya Keny became the first bowler from UAE to take a hat-trick in women’s T20Is.
UAE beat Bahrain by 210 Runs
Finally, UAE played their last game against Bahrain to complete the tournament on a high. Batting first, UAE posted a mammoth total of 1-253 in 20 overs, courtesy of Esha Oza, who blasted an unbeaten 158 off just 71 balls. The opening batter hammered 22 boundaries and half a dozen sixes during her blitzkrieg. In the process, she became the first cricketer for UAE to score a century in WT20Is. Later, UAE bundled out Bahrain cheaply for 43 in 16 overs to win the match by 210 runs.
UAE dominated the GCC Women’s Gulf Club as they remained invincible throughout the tournament. Esha Oza won the player of the series for her scintillating batting performance. The right handed opening batter scored 253 runs in five matches, including a century and a half-century. She was also the leading run getter in the competition. On the other hand, with the ball, it was Kuwait’s right arm seamer Maria Jasvi, who ended up with the most wickets. Jasvi scalped eight wickets in five matches, including one five-wicket haul and had an economy rate of under five runs per over.
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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.