England has already made their way to the semi-finals of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, yet making a statement in their final group stage match was nothing short of phenomenal, and at the receiving end of this was Pakistan. A complete and dominant team effort by England saw them hand a massive 114 runs loss to Pakistan, derailing and making it impossible to generate any chances of them making it to the semi-finals. England won the toss and decided to bat first.
England made the most of the conditions and looking at their score at the end of the innings makes the writing clear on the wall but giving them the desired start was the duo of Danni Wyatt and Sophia Dunkley, but the latter was dismissed by Fatima Sana, and before the dangerous Alice Capsey could make any impact, Sadia Iqbal got another crucial breakthrough for Pakistan. Danni Wyatt silenced all her critics with a brilliant 59 off 33 until Tuba Hassan got the better of her. The subsequent over also saw Heather Knight get dismissed without affecting the scoreboard much for 4. Although they were rocked by these setbacks, Nat Sciver-Brunt showing her finesse, notched an unbelievable assault on the Pakistani bowling en route her 81 off 40, and with Amy Jones adding the finishing touches with her 47 off 31, England piled on and put up 213/5 on the board in their 20 overs quota. The Pakistani bowling was rendered ineffective against the might of the England batting, and Fatima Sana with her 2 wickets, Sadia Iqbal, Nida Dar and Tuba Hassan with their solitary wickets, respectively, were the highlights of the bowling effort, nevertheless.
Chasing a mammoth total of 213 takes a psychological toll on the chasing side, as visible by Pakistan’s batting. Losing Sadaf Shams for a two-ball duck was not ideal right in the first over. Their misery was multiplied as Muneeba Ali’s and Omaima Sohail’s painful stays at the crease with their knocks of 3 and 9 ended as Charlie Dean and Nat Sciver-Brunt dismissed them. The duo of Sidra Ameen and Nida Dar tried to inspire some fightback but was abruptly brought to an end when they were dismissed for 12 and 11, respectively. Aliya Riaz’s dismissal signaled the demise of the batting, and the consecutive runouts of Tuba Hassan for 28 and Sidra Nawaz for 3 worsened the situation. Fatima Sana remained not out for 16 as wickets around her tumbled. Eventually, Pakistan ended on 99/9 in their 20 overs, drawing curtains on a disastrous and forgettable end to their World Cup.
✨Player of the Match – Nat Sciver-Brunt 👏🙌
She smashed an unbeaten 81 against 🇵🇰Pakistan, including 12 Fours and 1 Six. She went on to pick 1 wicket after the innings break.🤩#CricketTwitter #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/vBfQnlrXdp
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) February 21, 2023
Nat Sciver yet again shone with a scintillating all-round performance reminding the world why she is one of the most sought-after players and deservingly bagged the ‘Player of the Match’.
Brief Scores: ENG – 213/5 in 20 overs (N Sciver-Brunt 81*, D Wyatt 59, A Jones 47; F Sana 2/44, T Hassan 1/37) defeated PAK- 99/9 in 20 overs (T Hassan 28, F Sana 16*, K Sciver-Brunt 2/14, C Dean 2/28) by 114 runs
🏴 England won by 114 runs
🏴 England: 213-5 (20)
Danielle Wyatt: 59 (33)
Nat Sciver-Brunt: 81* (40)
Fatima Sana: 2-44🇵🇰 Pakistan: 99-9 (20)
Tuba Hassan: 28 (20)
Fatima Sana: 16* (32)
Katherine Sciver-Brunt: 2-14#CricketTwitter #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/JpVKNmcYLG— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) February 21, 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.