Asia Cup 2024, NEP-W vs PAK-W Match 6, Group A Match Report, July 21, 2024

Admin July 21, 2024

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Asia Cup 2024, NEP-W vs PAK-W Match 6, Group A Match Report, July 21, 2024

Pakistan 110 for 1 (Feroza 57, Muneeba 46*) batting Nepal 108 for 6 (Joshi 31*, Magar 26, Iqbal 2-19) by nine wickets

Pakistan kept their Women’s Asia Cup campaign alive with a massive nine-wicket victory over Nepal in Dambulla on Sunday evening.

Having lost their first match against India, Pakistan were in a position to win and did not disappoint their fans. Nepal got off to a fast start after being dispatched. They finished well. But Pakistan’s bowlers and batsmen – there were three run-outs – did enough damage in the middle overs to restrict Nepal to 108 for 6. Gull Feroza and Muneeba Ali then scored 105 in just 11.2 overs to kill the match. Feroza was in charge, scoring 57 off 35 balls, while Muneeba remained unbeaten on 46 off 34 balls.

The win raised Pakistan’s run rate to 0.409 and lifted them to second place in the points table.

A good start for Nepal

Samjhana Khadka, fresh off a match-winning half-century against the UAE, hit Fatima Sana over cover for four on the fourth ball of the innings. But he was late on the next ball, and ended up giving Nashra Sandhu an easy bowler at short-on.

The wicket did not hamper Nepal’s aim. Sita Rana Magar, another opener, and Kabita Kunwar, number 3, also opened their accounts four each. The pair also hit a boundary off Omaima Sohail to put the team at 29 for 1 after four overs.

Iqbal’s double hit puts the brakes on

In her first over, Sadia Iqbal hit Kunwar on the pads three times in three balls. When Iqbal came back for the second time, for the fifth time in the innings, Kunwar tried to cut him but ended up putting it at the keeper. Nepal captain Indu Barma bowled just two balls; Iqbal hit him quickly with an arm ball that shook the stumps. Sohail followed up Iqbal’s one run, with two wickets with a maiden as Nepal ended the powerplay with 30 for 3.

Nepal’s next boundary came in the ninth over when Rubina Chhetry edged Sandhu down for four. But Chhetry’s exit in the next over kept Nepal out. Soon after, Magar also ran out of time when he went to run second.

Joshi and Mahato helped Nepal finish strongly

After 15 overs, Nepal were 68 for 5, and it looked as if they would struggle to reach 100. But Puja Mahato and Kabita Joshi changed gears after that. There was a time when both of them hit six fours in 18 balls. Mahato got out with five balls left in the innings but Joshi batted till the end until he hit Sana in only six innings in the last over. Pakistan’s sloppy fielding also helped Nepal, who scored 40 in the last five overs.

Feroza, Muneeba ace the chase

If Nepal thinks it has posted a good amount, Feroza and Muneeba have proved it to be anything but. Feroza hit the first ball chasing four covers. He hit three more boundaries in the next two overs and went on to 20 off 16 balls. Muneeba had faced only two balls at that time and was yet to open his account.

Muneeba had a hard time finding time at first but it didn’t take long for her to succeed. In the sixth over, he hit Magar for three fours as Pakistan ended the powerplay with 52 for no loss.

Even when the field restrictions were relaxed, there was no respite for the Nepali bowlers, who not only deviated from their lines and lengths but also lacked support from their bowlers. Not a single moment of the chase was out of bounds.

Feroza single-handedly hit eight fours in the first eight overs, bringing up his maiden T20I fifty in 30 balls. When he fell, Pakistan needed just four runs, which Muneeba managed with yet another boundary.

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Admin July 21, 2024

0 0 3 minutes read