The Indian Women’s team produced a perfect team effort to defeat the Pakistan Women by seven wickets with six balls in hand at Providence in the Women’s World T20.
A 93-run partnership between Bismah Maroof (53 off 49, four fours) and Nida Dar (52 off 35 ball, five fours, two sixes, S/R 148.57) took Pakistan to a score of 133-7 off their 20 overs. Skipper Javeria Khan was the only other batter to reach double figures in the innings, scoring 17 before being run out after a mix-up running between the wickets.
Poonam Yadav’s legbreak googlies were the most economical of the innings, securing her figures of 4-0-22-0 (econ 5.50), with Dayalan Hemalatha (2-34) and Arundhati Reddy (1-24) also getting among the wickets.
Mithali Raj and Smriti Mandhana got the Indian Women’s innings off to a great start, adding 73 runs before Smriti Mandhana fell for 26 off 29 balls (four fours) in the 1oth over.
Raj and Jemimah Rodrigues moved the score along to 101 in the 15th over, before Rodrigues was caught and bowled by Nida Dar for 16 off 21 balls. Raj fell with her side eight runs from victory, caught by Dar off the bowling of Diana Baig for 56 off 47 balls (seven fours).
Harmanpreet Kaur (14 not out) and Veda Krishnamurthy (eight not out) saw India home with seven wickets in hand and one over left to bowl.
Nida Dar bowled superbly to return figures of 4-0-17-1 (econ 4.25), with Diana Baig (1-19) and Bismah Maroof (1-21) picking up the other wickets to fall.
Raj took home the Player of the Match award for her well-played half-century as India made it two wins from two.
Photo: Jan Kruger-IDI/IDI via Getty Images
