Women Twenty20: Pakistan lose to SA off penultimate ball

Poor battin­g let down women’s team in 2014 WT20 qualif­ier.

Just two days after edging out arch-rivals India by a single run, Pakistan Women suffered the agony of a loss off the penultimate ball of the match, losing the 2014 World Twenty20 Qualifier to South Africa by five wickets.

Chasing 88 after Pakistan’s batting let the team down yet again, South Africa lost their first wicket in the third over and were under pressure throughout the innings. A steady 22 by Trisha Chetty and a 39-ball 25 by Alison Hodgkinson helped their team reach the target with a ball to spare.

Earlier, Bismah Marooof was the only Pakistan to reach double figures, scoring a 40-ball 32 after Sana Mir opted to bat first. The poor effort with the bat, and the result, came as a huge disappointment to Sana who had hoped to build on the success against India.

“It is the responsibility of the batters to improve, as bowlers cannot defend totals that are lower than 100 runs over and over again,” said Sana after the loss. “We have to get together and see our weaknesses and need to ensure we score at least 120 runs if we are going to win matches on a regular basis.”

In the other Qualifier, India thrashed Sri Lanka by nine wickets after Ekta Bisht’s hat-trick helped her side restrict Sri Lanka for just 100 for eight off their quota.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 4^th, 2012.