In their maiden appearance in the T20 Qualifiers, USA crashed to a 30-run defeat against Scotland in the first completed encounter in Group A at Forfashire Cricket Club in Dundee. Kathryn Bryce led from the front with an unbeaten 29 and figures of 2 for 6.
Having chosen to bat, Scotland got off to a steady start. Sarah and Kathryn Bryce shared a 29-run opening stand, before Claudine Beckford dismissed the former for 12. That wicket, however, did little to curtail the hosts’ progress, as Kathryn found the boundary at regular intervals. Despite Beckford’s three-wicket haul, Scotland managed to put up a competitive total of 60 for 3 in their seven overs.
In reply, USA got off a horrendous start. An ugly swipe across the line from Shebani Bhaskar was brilliantly caught by Sarah Bryce, the wicket-keeper, who took a one-handed catch diving forward. It was an effort that summed up the day for USA.
Their batters struggled to find their timing on a pitch that was slightly slow. Scotland attacked the stumps, and the USA batters continued to swing across the line in search of the boundary. Only Sindhu Sriharsha (10), their captain, managed a double digit score, while the others did little to trouble the scorers.
In the end, the visitors could only muster a total of 30 for 5— nowhere near the target they had been set.
Over at Lochlands ground in Arbroath, Ireland decimated Namibia by seven wickets to begin their campaign with a bang. Following Eimear Richardson’s economical spell of 2 for 10, Ireland’s top order combined to polish off their 84-run target.
Gaby Lewis began the chase well, with a brisk knock of 26, that included five boundaries. However, her dismissal in the seventh over reduced Ireland to 33 for 2.
Mary Waldron, the veteran wicket-keeper, joined forces with Kim Garth, and the pair stitched together a 49-run partnership for the third wicket to take Ireland to the brink of victory. With two runs needed off 25 deliveries, Waldron was dismissed by Wilka Mwatile for an enterprising 30-ball 33. Garth knocked off the remaining runs in the next over, guiding her team to a comfortable win. She was unbeaten on 22.
Earlier in the day, having been sent in to bat in overcast conditions, Namibia struggled to get going. After taking nine runs off the opening over, their batters seemed to hit a bit of a speed bump, as the run rate quickly plummeted. Maria Enright (20 off 33) and Kayla Green (8 off 18) consumed balls, but were unable to gather any momentum. It was an issue that worried Namibia through the course of the innings as they stuttered to 83 for 9 in their 20 overs.
Brief Scores:
Scotland 60/3 in 7 overs (Kathryn Bryce 29*; Claudine Beckford 3-26) beat United States of America 30/5 in 7 overs (K Bryce 2-6) by 30 runs. PoM: Kathryn Bryce.
Namibia 83/9 in 20 overs (Maria Enright 20; Eimear Richardson 2-10) lost to Ireland 84/3 in 14.3 overs (Mary Waldron 33, Gaby Lewis 26) by six wickets. PoM: Mary Waldron.
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