On missing the chance to qualify for their maiden semi-final in an ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board advised its national team not to be disappointed.
In their opening match, Pakistan had defeated the 2016 champions and West Indies who are fifth in the ranking. Team Pakistan is ranked seventh in charts. They lost two consecutive matches against second-ranked team England and sixth-ranked team South Africa.
Pakistan’s match against Thailand was abandoned after the first innings due to rain. In the first half of the match Thailand, the new coming team surprised everyone by scoring 150 for 3.
Urooj Mumtaz, Chair of the women’s selection committee said: “The impressive eight-wicket victory against the West Indies, had given all of us the hope that the Pakistan national women’s team will qualify for the semi-finals. So, from that perspective, it was disappointing to see the girls finish with three points.
“The absence of the captain, Bismah Maroof, for the South Africa fixture due to a communitive fracture in her right thumb affected the team’s combination and moral. Bismah brings vast experience and stability in the batting line along with impressive qualities as a leader, both of which were severely missed in the remaining games.
“Nevertheless, we are satisfied to see that the girls are continuing to progress by making strides in the upward direction. The experience and exposure gained from this tournament will certainly help the players improve further and narrow the gap with the top sides.”
Pakistan’s eight-wicket victory over the West Indies was only their seventh in 28 matches in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup since 2009. Their previous wins were against India (2012 and 2016), Ireland (2014 and 2018), Sri Lanka (2014) and Bangladesh (2016).
“In the 50-over ICC Women’s Championship 2017-2020, Pakistan is fifth on the points table – ahead of New Zealand and the West Indies. So, overall there has been an improvement in the standard of women’s cricket and with the investment, the PCB is making at the grassroots level and the opportunities being offered at the international level, we remain optimistic that soon Pakistan will become a top competitive side.
“During the tournament, Nida Dar and Javeria Khan became third and fourth Pakistan woman cricketers to complete a century of T20Is after Bismah and Sana Mir. On behalf of the PCB, I want to congratulate both on their achievements and I am sure they will continue to serve the country with distinction in years to come,” former captain Urooj Mumtaz said.
🚨Milestone Alert🚨
Javeria Khan today became the 4th Pakistani cricketer to play 100 T20I Matches.
Joins the elite list with:
Bismah Maroof – 108
Sana Mir – 106
Nida Dar – 101#SAvPAK #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/NZMzw8nFE0— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) March 1, 2020
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