West Indies captain Hayley Matthews inspired her team to a three-run win against Pakistan in a low-scoring Women’s T20 World Cup match at Boland Park in Paarl on Sunday.
Veteran Pakistan all-rounder Nida Dar and her fellow slow bowlers restricted West Indies to 116 for six in their 20 overs. Pakistan were always behind the required run-rate but scored three boundaries in the last over to finish with 113 for five. The result ensured that England, with three wins in three matches, qualified for the semi-finals.
Pakistan still have a mathematical chance of making the last-four if they can beat England in their final match and India, currently second on the Group 2 table, slip up against Ireland, who have yet to win a match.
Matthews took two for 14 in four overs with her off-spinners and set a strong example in the field to enable her team to finish with two wins from four matches in the group stage.
It was a bitter-sweet day for Nida, who took two for 13 in four overs of accurate off-spin to equal former West Indies player Anisa Mohammed’s record of 125 wickets in women’s T20 Internationals.
Nida scored 27 in Pakistan’s reply but couldn’t take her team to victory. The batters found it difficult to score quickly on a slow pitch and there were only nine boundaries in the West Indies innings and eight when Pakistan batted.
On Saturday, Tahlia McGrath and Ashleigh Gardner took Australia into the semi-finals with aggressive batting to defeat South Africa by six wickets at St George’s Park in Gqeberha.
Chasing 125 to win, Australia were in trouble at 40 for three but McGrath and Gardner went for their shots in a fourth-wicket partnership of 81 to secure victory for the defending champions with 21 balls to spare.
McGrath was the dominant partner, hitting 57 off 33 balls before being caught going for a big hit with four runs needed to win. She reached her half-century off 29 deliveries. Gardner made 28 not out off 29 balls.
PAARL: Seasoned Pakistan all-rounder Nida Dar sets the field before delivering a ball during the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup Group 2 match against West Indies at Boland Park on Sunday. Although Pakistan lost the low-scoring game, off-spinner Dar took two wickets for 13 in four overs to equal West Indies spinner Anisa Mohammed’s record of 125 wickets in women’s T20 Internationals. The result ensured that England qualified for the semi-finals. Pakistan still have a mathematical chance of making the last four if they beat England in their final match and India slip up against Ireland.—AFP
