Sports Bulletin

The Women’s World Cup is a platform where stars are born, and it is the ultimate stage where cricketers of the day can leave ever-lasting legacies. For Pakistan, the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 is an opportunity to leave a mark and break the glass ceiling. We arrive in New Zealand well prepared, with our eyes set on one of the four semi-final spots. We have never made it to the knockouts of any World Cup across the two formats, but that does not mean that that time will never come. With the experience of Javeria Khan, Nida Dar, Diana Baig and Anam Amin; the extraordinary talent of Fatima Sana and Ghulam Fatima; and the grit of Aliya Riaz and Omaima Sohail, this team has all the ingredients to make history in this beautiful country. We have put together a strong squad, which not only covers all bases but also provides the right balance required for a tournament as lengthy and demanding as this World Cup will be. We have a perfect mix of talent and experience in both departments, and a team eager to push the limits and make its fans and supporters proud. Since the last edition in 2017 of the event, our team has had its share of ups and downs. Through sheer hard work, grit and determination, we established ourselves as a force to reckon in the ICC Women’s Championship 2017-20 cycle. We achieved many firsts, thanks to the unrelenting passion of the girls. It was no mean achievement for a side which had finished seventh or second-last in the inaugural edition of the ICC Women’s Championship just two years ago and failed to win a match in the following World Cup to break into the top four of the table, before finishing fifth due to a series cancellation. And that momentum translated in our victory against the West Indies in our ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 opener. The team’s performances, however, since our return to cricket after a covid-induced hiatus have not been up to the mark, There have been some outstanding individual performances. But the overall results have been below par and there is a strong realisation in the camp that the last year does not justify the collective potential and talent of this side. There is an urge to undo the mistakes of the last year in every individual. During our preparations in Karachi in the lead-up to this tournament, every player has put in the hard yards to prepare for the challenges that await us in New Zealand. The World Cup format provides all the sides much-desired exposure and experience as each team is pitted against all the participating sides. With each team playing seven matches, only a side that displays quality cricket on a consistent basis will progress. We will take one match at a time and focus on the task at hand. The challenge to be among the top four sides can overwhelm one, but when that challenge is broken down into small, achievable goals one gets motivated to achieve it. We start our campaign by facing India, which promises to be a great occasion for women’s cricket in the subcontinent. It will surely be an exciting contest. Pakistan v India is a rivalry that attracts record eyeballs across the globe. In our part of the world, it becomes the talk of the town when the two neighbours face off. I am sure millions of girls will tune in to watch this game and will leave inspired to take up the game. I am thrilled to be here in New Zealand, finally, for this World Cup and thank the Pakistan Cricket Board for their support that helped me in returning to the game I love, smoothly. The introduction of the maternal policy has made the game more inclusive for women. It is a great initiative, which will definitely see more girls follow their passion. With my daughter, Fatima, in the picture, I am excited to see how the next couple of months will pan out. Covid has had an impact on women’s game around the world, but this tournament promises a new beginning and comes with a ray of hope of us getting back to normal life. Good luck to all the participants! Here is to making this World Cup a memorable one.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABADA:-New Zealand batter Amy Satterthwaite has moved up to number three in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings after a fine effort in the opening match of their five-ODI series against India in Queenstown, less than three weeks ahead of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022. Satterthwaite, who smashed a 67 ball 63 and was involved in an important 98 run third wicket partnership with opener Suzie Bates, has overtaken Australia’s Beth Mooney with a gain of 13 rating points. She is now 15 rating points behind India captain Mithali Raj, who is second with 744 in the list led by Australia opener Alyssa Healy who is 749 rating points. Bates’ 11th ODI hundred, which helped her team take a 1-0 lead in the series and won her the Player of the Match award, has lifted her into the world’s top 20 batters in ODIs for the first time in six months. The former captain has advanced five places to 17th position in the latest weekly update that includes the last match of the Australia-England series. Australia completed their Ashes triumph with another comfortable victory in the final ODI in Melbourne last week. Tammy Beaumont returned to form for England with a half-century, as did Meg Lanning with an unbeaten 57, allowing both batters to gain three places for their efforts. Beaumont and Lanning are now in fourth and fifth positions, respectively, with just one rating point separating them. In the bowlers’ list, England spinner Sophie Ecclestone was a bright spark in the final ODI, bowling her 10-over allocation and conceding just 18 runs while dismissing Rachael Haynes, taking an an excellent catch off her own bowling. She has moved a place up to second, closing in on the opportunity to top both the ODI and T20I bowling rankings at the same time. Ellyse Perry’s return to all-round excellence also enabled her to gain three places with the ball and increase her lead over second placed Nat Sciver in the all-rounders’ table to an impressive 87 rating points. New Zealand’s Lea Tahuhu is up four places to 13th and India’s Rajeshwari Gayakwad is up five places to 16th. Both bowled economically in the Queenstown ODI to move up in the world’s top 20 ODI bowlers. In the T20I rankings, Beth Mooney is back in her third stint as the top ranked batter with captain Meg Lanning also gaining a slot to reach second position. India opener Shafali Verma is now third in the list. New Zealand bowlers Amelia Kerr is up five places to eighth and Jess Kerr is up 16 places to 34th also making notable gains in the T20I rankings.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-Australia’s Ellyse Perry is back at the top of the list of all-rounders in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings after a fine show in the second ODI of their three-match series against England. The 31-year-old scored a steady 64-ball 40 and took three for 12 in seven overs to win the Player of the Match award in Melbourne. The performance helped her move 47 rating points ahead of England’s Nat Sciver to the number one position. Perry had conceded the top spot to Sciver after holding the top spot for 1,535 days from 12 July 2017 to 24 September 2021 and has not been out of the top two in terms of all-rounders in ODI cricket since November 2014. In the latest weekly update that considers the first two matches of the Australia-England series as well as the third and fourth South Africa versus West Indies matches and comes less than a month ahead of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 in New Zealand, Australia batter Beth Mooney and England spinner Sophie Ecclestone too have made significant gains. Mooney’s innings of 73 in the first ODI has helped her up into the top three for the first time in her six-year career. She started the series in eighth place and is now in the top three in both ODI and T20I cricket as she is placed second in T20Is, just two points behind India opener Shafali Verma. Ecclestone is another player featuring in the top three in both lists. Despite England losing the first two ODIs, the left-arm spinner bowled economically and is now up to third with a career-best 717 rating points. She currently tops the T20I rankings with 761 points, 39 clear of team-mate Sarah Glenn.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-Cricket is the first discipline to announce its complete line-up for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games after Sri Lanka was confirmed as the eighth team in the women’s T20 tournament. The announcement was made jointly by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) on Tuesday following Sri Lanka’s victory in the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 in Kuala Lumpur last week and the subsequent CGF ratification of Sri Lanka’s entry. Australia, Barbados, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa and Pakistan have already qualified as women’s cricket makes its first entry into the Commonwealth Games. It will only be the second time that cricket features in the multi-discipline event after a men’s competition was part of the Games in Kuala Lumpur in 1998 and is considered a massive opportunity to bring the game to new audiences. Shaun Pollock-led South Africa had won the gold on that occasion, beating Steve Waugh’s Australia side by four wickets in the final. ICC Hall of Famers Sachin Tendulkar of India, Jacques Kallis of South Africa and Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka were among the many stars part of the Games then. The league-cum-knockout tournament this time kicks off with a match between ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 finalists Australia and India on 29 July, with the bronze and gold medal matches scheduled for 7 August. Barbados and Pakistan are in Group A along with Australia and India while England, New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka form Group B. The ICC, CGF and Commonwealth Games Sri Lanka congratulated Sri Lanka for their qualification and looked forward to an exciting tournament. ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice said: “It’s good to have finalised the identity of the teams participating in the Commonwealth Games and congratulations to Sri Lanka for making it after playing so well in the qualifier.  We will have eight of the best teams competing for the gold and I am sure we will get to watch a highly competitive tournament. “The Commonwealth Games are an important part of the women’s cricket calendar over the next year. It is a huge opportunity for us to take cricket beyond the traditional strongholds and give more people around the world the chance to enjoy the game, whilst the players are very much looking forward to being part of multi-sport games. “I would like to take this opportunity to once again thank the Commonwealth Games Federation for their support and hope to see some top-quality cricket at Edgbaston.” CGF President Dame Louise Martin said: “Congratulations to the eight outstanding teams who have qualified for the women’s T20 cricket tournament at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. “I must pay particular tribute to Sri Lanka, who secured the eighth and final spot by winning such an exciting qualifying tournament in Malaysia last week.” “They will head to the iconic Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham with an elite lineup featuring England, Australia, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Barbados and New Zealand. “Cricket is a sport synonymous with the Commonwealth. We are so excited to have it back in the Games for the first time since the men's 50 over competition at Kuala Lumpur in 1998. The debut of women's T20 cricket will be a historic moment and a wonderful showcase of women’s sport across the world.” Commonwealth Games Sri Lanka Secretary General Maxwell de Silva said: “We are delighted to have qualified for the Commonwealth Games women's T20 cricket tournament. “Our team put on a fantastic display as they won all four matches at the qualification tournament to secure the final spot at Birmingham 2022. “I would like to congratulate Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu and the entire team as they join a world-class lineup in Birmingham for what will be a special moment for cricket and the Commonwealth Games.” Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu said: “It’s a great feeling to have qualified for the Commonwealth Games and all of us are really excited to be part of the multi-sport extravaganza. I’m sure it’s going to be a different experience for all of us. “We had a memorable Qualifying tournament in Kuala Lumpur and now look forward to doing well in Birmingham against the best. “I would like to thank Sri Lanka Cricket, the ICC, Commonwealth Games Sri Lanka and the CGF for all their support.” The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, being held from 28 July to 8 August, will see 4,500 athletes from 72 nations and territories compete across the 11 spectacular days of sport. Birmingham 2022 will be the first major multi-sport event in history to award more medals to women than men.

Sports Bulletin ISLAMABAD:-Captain Chamari Athapaththu produced a superb all-round effort to help Sri Lanka score a fine 22-run victory over Bangladesh and win the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur on Monday. The last match of the five-team tournament, played to decide the final qualifying spot at this year’s Commonwealth Games, saw Athapaththu score 48 runs to propel Sri Lanka to 136 for six before returning figures of three for 17 to restrict Bangladesh to 114 for five. The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) will announce the cricket line-up in due course, once Sri Lanka are officially confirmed as the eighth team in Birmingham, joining Australia, Barbados, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa, who have already qualified for the Games. Athapaththu did everything right today right from winning the toss in the crucial fixture. Electing to bat, Sri Lanka were kept quiet by opening bowlers Salma Khatun and Soraya Azmim in the first few overs. Azmim was rewarded for consistently hitting hard lengths when Vishmi Gunaratne lobbed her to Fargana Hoque at mid-off to leave Sri Lanka at 14 for one in the fourth over. A few balls later, Athapaththu slashed Azmim over the infield for four before unleashing a barrage of sweep shots against Bangladesh’s spinners, two of which cleared the ropes for six. Off-spinner Salma Khatun, the only bowler up to that point to keep Athapaththu in check, was brought back into the attack. She responded by trapping Hasini Perera plumb in front with the score 61 for two in the ninth over. Athapaththu muscled Rumana over extra cover for six as she approached what could have been her third half-century of the tournament. However, she missed out on her fifty when she tried to repeat the shot, only managing an edge through to Shamima Sultana behind the stumps. Unsurprisingly, the fall of Athapaththu’s wicket allowed Bangladesh’s spinners to claw back before Nilakshi de Silva and Anushka Sanjeewani helped Sri Lanka accumulate 42 runs in the last five overs to take the score to 136 for six. In reply, Bangladesh benefitted from a dropped catch and four overthrows in the first couple of overs. Shamima Sultana was caught in the circle by Udeshika Prabodhani off the bowling of Ama Kanchana to leave Bangladesh at 18 for one in the third over. However, left-handed opener Murshida Khatun continued her fine form by clearing the infield for boundaries on three occasions during a Powerplay that fetched Bangladesh 46 runs. However, Sri Lanka’s spin quartet of Athapaththu, Inoka Ranaweera, Sachini Nisansala, and Kavisha Dilhari put the squeeze on Bangladesh, who could not score a single boundary in the next six overs. Athapaththu’s arm ball trapped Murshida in front to leave Bangladesh at 71 for two after 12 overs, requiring a further 66 runs off 48 balls for victory. Despite a dropped catch that went for four and a no-ball from Athapaththu, Bangladesh were unable to fight back as Sri Lanka completed a comfortable victory. Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana identified what went wrong for her team. “They managed to score extra boundaries in the last three overs. And we could not do well with the bat,” she said. Athapaththu was particularly impressed with her bowlers in this game. “I had complete confidence in our experienced bowling attack. The plan was to bowl lots of dot balls to exert pressure,” she said. Athapaththu was awarded the Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament awards. “I wanted to bat through, but I’m reasonably happy with the start I got today, giving a platform for the other players to compile a challenging total,” she said. Brief Scores: Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by 22 runs. Sri Lanka 136/6 in 20 Overs; Bangladesh 114/5 in 20 Overs. Player of the Match: Chamari Athapaththu

Sports Bulletin LAHORE:-Bismah Maroof will lead the national side in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand as the national women’s selection committee announced the squad for the tournament to be played from 4 March till 3 April. The event will mark Bismah’s return to international cricket after two years as she took break from the game for the birth of her first child in December 2020. She will be accompanied by a support person, as part of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s parental policy, to help her look after the newborn, while keeping her focus on cricket. Asmavia Iqbal-led selection committee that includes Saleem Jaffar and Taufeeq Umar has called up leg-spinner Ghulam Fatima, who last played for Pakistan in 2018, and opener Nahida Khan, whose last outing in Pakistan colours was last January, after impressive performances in practice matches during the recent Karachi camp. Chair of women’s national selection committee Asmavia Iqbal: “I want to congratulate every player who made it to the squad for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup. We considered the conditions and challenges our team will encounter in New Zealand along with the current form of players and the team’s balance while putting together this squad. “While we have retained majority of the players who have been on the national duty recently, we have called back Nahida Khan and Ghulam Fatima. Nahida brings with her experience that every team seeks going into a World Cup and Fatima has had an incredible run in Karachi. She has done well to enhance her fitness and has been in good form in domestic cricket of late. Bismah Maroof: “It is a great honour for me to lead my country into another World Cup. I am thrilled to be back in action and do what I love and have dedicated my life to. “The recent selection matches proved to be fruitful for me and the whole side as we got some match practice under competitive and challenging environment leading into the mega event. The aim is to reach the World Cup semi-finals and I believe this team has the potential to pull it off.” The Pakistan squad will begin the final phase of their preparations with a 10-day pre-departure camp in Karachi from 27 January. They will depart for NZ on 8 February. Pakistan squad: Bismah Maroof (captain), Nida Dar (vice-captain), Aiman Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Anam Amin, Diana Baig, Fatima Sana, Ghulam Fatima, Javeria Khan, Muneeba Ali, Nahida Khan, Nashra Sandhu, Omaima Sohail, Sidra Amin and Sidra Nawaz Traveling reserves: Iram Javed, Najiha Alvi and Tuba Hassan Player support personnel: Aisha Jalil (team manager), David Hemp (head coach), Arshad Khan (assistant coach), Kamran Hussain (assistant coach), Saboor Ahmad (strength and conditioning coach), Zubair Ahmad (analyst), Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi (media and digital content manager) and Rifat Asghar Gill (Physiotherapist) Pakistan’s fixtures at ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022: 6 March – Pakistan v India at Bay Oval, Tauranga 8 March – Pakistan v Australia at Bay Oval, Tauranga 11 March – Pakistan v South Africa at Bay Oval, Tauranga 14 March – Pakistan v Bangladesh at Seddon Park, Hamilton 21 March – Pakistan v West Indies at Seddon Park, Hamilton 24 March – Pakistan v England at Hagley Oval, Christchurch 26 March – Pakistan v New Zealand at Hagley Oval, Christchurch

Bipin Dani World's leading women cricketers have signed to play in the FaiBreak Invitational 2022 tournament to be held in May this year, it is learnt. The latest to sign are : Bangladeshi fast bowler Jahanara Alam, Sri Lankan captain Chamari Atapattu and UAE opener Esha Oza. Jahanara, an outstanding fast bowler was the first Bangladeshi female cricketer to take a five-wicket haul in a single T20 match. Chamari has been a mainstay in Sri Lanka's batting attack for over a decade. According to the sources in Malaysia, where she is participating in the ICC's Women's Commonwealth Games Qualifiers, the organizers have recently signed her for this six-team tournament. There will be nineteen matches played for 15 days. Leading players from other foreign countries and Asian nations including India and Pakistan will also participate in the tournament, which is sanctioned by the ICC. It will take place on May 1-15 this year in Dubai in conjunction with Cricket Hong Kong. Owing to the current pandemic, Hong Kong airport is not operational for airlines from all countries and therefore the decision has been taken to play the matches in Dubai.  and the leading healthcare group Gencor has come forward to be the main sponsor. Interestingly, this is the world's first privately funded tournament in women's cricket history.

Sports Bulletin ISLAMABAD:-Bangladesh’s spinners helped their team beat Scotland by nine wickets for their third consecutive win before Malaysia recorded a memorable five-wicket victory over Kenya in the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday. With Sri Lanka already having won three matches, the last match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on Monday will decide the winners of the five-team tournament, being played to decide the one remaining slot in this year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The line-up for Birmingham will be confirmed in due course, after the Commonwealth Games Federation of the winning country formally accepts the slot. Australia, Barbados, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa are the seven teams already confirmed for the Games. Bangladesh vs Scotland An unbeaten partnership of 78 runs for the second wicket between Murshida Khatun (50 off 35 balls) and Fargana Hoque (20 of 36) led Bangladesh to victory after they bowled Scotland out for 77 in 17.3 overs. After Scotland won the toss and chose to bat, Abbi Aitken-Drummon chipped a full toss back to Suraya Azmim in her follow through before the Bangladesh seamer dismissed Kathryn Bryce in her next over to leave Scotland reeling at 12 for two in the fourth over. Katie McGill then joined opener Sarah Bryce at the crease, and the two stitched together a 38-run partnership, which featured a flurry of boundaries scored in front of square on both the leg side and the off side. However, with the score on 50, Nahida Akter bowled Katie McGill with an arm ball, which sparked a collapse that saw Scotland lose their last eight wickets for 37 runs. Lorna Jack was next to go, suffering an identical fate to her predecessor before Sarah Bryce skied a catch to a gleeful Shanjida Akter in the circle. Scotland never recovered, getting bowled out for 77 with 2.3 overs to spare in their allotment of 20. In reply, Bangladesh lost a wicket off their very first delivery when Shamima Sultana poked at a Kathryn Bryce delivery, edging it through to keeper Sarah Bryce. Fargana Hoque then joined left-handed opener Murshida Khatun at the crease and the two blunted Scotland’s advances to get through to 22 for one at the end of the Powerplay. Feeling more secure at this point, Murshida Khatun started to play away from her body, picking up a boundary to third man to go with a few singles. In the eighth over, she drove Katherine through the covers for two boundaries, as Fargana Hoque held strong at the other end. As Murshida approached her first-ever T2OI fifty, Hoque let her farm the strike. The left-hander carted Kathryn Bryce for six to reach 49 before nudging a single away to register her half-century and deliver a win for Bangladesh with 4.4 overs to spare. Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana was impressed with her team’s all-round display. “After Scotland built a partnership, we didn’t panic. We were strict with our own plan. We knew we could break the partnership,” she said. Player-of-the-match Murshida revealed her simple game plan after Bangladesh lost a wicket of the first ball of their chase. “Until the end, don’t lose my wicket,” she said. Scotland captain Kathryn Bryce backed her team’s newfound aggressive approach despite the loss. “With the way we are starting to be more aggressive with the bat, days like today will happen, but we are building towards a positive future,” she said. Malaysia vs Kenya Off-spinning all-rounder Mas Elysa stole the show with figures of two for 19 and a quick-fire 37 (26) to help Malaysia chase down 89 with five wickets and 10 balls to spare against Kenya. Earlier in the day, Kenya won the toss and chose to bat. In the first over, opener Queentor Abel was dismissed for a duck by an inswinger from Malaysian skipper Winifred Duraisingam. Malaysia’s bowlers kept things tight as Kenya was unable to score any boundaries in the Powerplay. Mary Mwangi broke the shackles by whipping Nur Zulaika away for four in the seventh over before Margaret Ngoche was caught by Shasa Azmi off the bowling of Arianna Natasya to leave Kenya at 24 for two after eight overs. Mas Elysa was then introduced into the attack getting Mwangi stumped before Sarah Bhakita hit one back to Elysa, which ricocheted off her fingers an into the hands of Duraisingam at mid-off. Kenya, to their credit, did not collapse and continued to rotate the strike, scoring 27 runs in their final five overs to post a score of 87 for six. In reply, Queentor Abel had Duraisingam stumped for a duck in the first over. Wan Julia was run out in the next over when Mas Elysa called her through for a run that wasn’t there. Despite Malaysia struggling at nine for two, Mas Elysa was undeterred. She punished Kenya’s bowlers whenever they bowled too straight or drifted down leg and was equally viscous with her off side game. Needing a wicket, Kenyan skipper Margaret Ngoche turned Mercyline Ochieng. The seamer responded by nipping a ball back into Mas Elysa, which the right-hander could only chop onto her stumps to leave Malaysia at 53 for three in 9.2 overs. The runs dried up in the next few overs before Ainna Hamizah was bowled around her legs by Sarah Bhakita. With 30 runs required in the last seven overs, Kenya had a glimmer of hope. However, Intan Jaafar had other ideas. She swept Queentor Abel down to fine leg for four before a late cut beat a diving short third man to race away for another boundary. Malaysia lost Jaafar when she hit Flavia Odhiambo to Ngoche at backward point. However, this would only prove to be a minor speed bump for Malaysia as Arianna Natasya and Nur Zulaika knocked off the remaining runs to deliver a historic win for Malaysia. Malaysia’s fielders ran onto the field once they got the winning runs. Captain Winifred Duraisingam explained the significance of this victory to her and her team. “After this great win, I feel a lot is going to happen and cricket in Malaysia is going to go to another level,” she said. Player-of-the-match Elysa spoke about her aggressive despite Malaysia losing early wickets in their chase. “Still wanted to play in an aggressive and attacking mode and I wanted to rotate the strike. Brief Scores: Bangladesh beat Scotland by nine wickets. Bangladesh 78/1 in 15.2 Overs; Scotland 77 All Out in 17.3 Overs. Player of the Match: Murshida Khatun Malaysia beat Kenya by five wickets. Malaysia 89/5 in 18.2 Overs; Kenya 88/6 in 20 Overs. Player of the Match: Mas Elysa

Sports Bulletin KUALA LUMPUR:-Scotland and Sri Lanka completed impressive victories on Saturday in the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 being played at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur to decide the one remaining slot in this year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Scotland vs Kenya Quick cameos from Abbi Aitken-Drummond and Kathryn Bryce propelled Scotland to 70 in a rain-reduced eight-over-a-side fixture before their bowlers restricted Kenya at the death to deliver a 16-run win. Winning the toss, Kenya elected to bowl. Sarah Bryce scored back-to-back boundaries kicking things off but got out scoring eight off three balls. A fine partnership of 38 between Abbi Aitken (21) and Kathryn Bryce (27) helped Scotland put up a challenging target. Scotland scored 15 in the final over and ended with 70 for three. Kenya’s opening batter, Q. Abel had a blazing start with consecutive boundaries. She, however, surrendered to Fraser in the second over. Fraser wasted no time in sending Veronica Abuga back to the pavilion on the very next ball. Sarah Wetoto then scored 24 not out and Sharon Juma got 10. Coming out to bat in a rain reduced game, captain and Player of the Match Kathryn Bryce said: “It is always difficult knowing what a good target is in a reduced game, so our plan was just to go out there play positively and assess as we went on. I think our bowling performance today was much more consistent and we bowled more to our fields.” Margaret Banja attributed Kenya’s loss to a slow start: “We did not take full advantage of the power-play and lost two quick wickets. We did not build partnerships in the initial stages and we gave out too many boundaries.” Malaysia vs Sri Lanka Malaysian captain won the toss and elected to field.  The experienced Sri Lankan team put up an imposing 175, and as expected, skipper Chamari Athapaththu handed a great start to Sri Lanka by scoring 30 off 17 balls. After Athapaththu’s departure, Harshita took control and scored a commendable 65 of f42. She was ably supported by Nilakshi De Silva, who scored 49 off 31.  Chasing a mammoth 175, Malaysia lost opener Wan Julia with no runs scored. Captain Winifred was the only batter who managed to play well, compiling 42. Sri Lanka’s Sugandika Dasanayaka and Oshadhi Ranasinghe went on to deliver top notch bowling by taking two wickets each, giving away 12 and 14 runs, respectively. Malaysia could only manage 82, losing by 93 runs. Athapaththu said she was disappointed not to get a big score this time. “But I had complete confidence in my batters and knew they would get us a respectable score.” Player of the Match, Harshitha Madhavi said: “We have been doing a lot hard work in the nets for the past six months. We also underwent several training camps. (And), we can get runs under any conditions. This was on full display today.” When asked about her thoughts on the match, Winifred explained: “the team had two changes and the juniors were given the opportunity to play against a very experienced team. We want to play good cricket and considered this a good opportunity for the team, especially the younger players.” Brief Scores: Scotland beat Kenya by 16 runs. Scotland 70 for 3 in 8 overs. Kenya 54 for 3 in 8 overs. Player of the Match: Kathryn Bryce Sri Lanka beat Malaysia by 93 runs. Sri Lanka 175 in 20 overs. Malaysia 82 in 20 overs. Player of the Match:  Harshitha Madhavi

Sports Bulletin ISLAMABAD:-Bangladesh and Scotland registered wins against Kenya and Malaysia respectively on day two of the CWG2022 Qualifier. Bangladesh romped to an 80-run win over Kenya before Scotland overcame Malaysia by 31 runs on the second day of the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. Bangladesh beat Kenya by 80 runs An unbeaten partnership of 75 for the seventh wicket between Salma Khatun (33 off 32 balls) and Ritu Moni (39 of 34) propelled Bangladesh to 125 before Player of the Match Nahida Akter broke the back of the Kenyan run chase with impressive figures of five for 12. Kenya won the toss and elected to bowl in their first match of the five-team tournament, being played to decide one remaining slot at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham. Australia, Barbados, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa have already qualified. Lavendah Idambo delivered a nervous first over, leaking 16 runs, including two boundaries and three wide deliveries. However, she hit back with the wicket of opener Shamima Sultana before Mercyline Ochieng trapped Nigar Sultana in front and dismissed Rumana Ahmed first ball. Murshida Khatun struck a few boundaries to the off side fence before getting a leading edge to Queentor Abel who made no mistake, taking the catch off her own bowling. In her very next over, Abel picked up the scalps of both Sobhana Mostary and Fargana Hoque to leave Bangladesh reeling at 50 for six at the end of nine overs. A period of consolidation followed as Ritu Moni and Salma Khatun opted to rotate the strike and play out Abel’s remaining overs. After getting their eye in, they accelerated the run rate with Ritu Moni lofting Sarah Bhakita into mid-wicket for a boundary. They picked up 30 runs in the final three overs to lift Bangladesh to a respectable 125. In reply, Kenya’s innings never got going. Veronica Abuga edged Salma Khatun through to keeper Shamima Sultana in the first over. Bowling the second over, Suraya Azmim trapped Queentor Abel in front for nine. A brilliant direct hit from Murshida Khatun caught Sylvia Kinyua short of her crease before Kenyan skipper Margarte Ngoche was trapped in front by a Nahida Akter arm ball. Akter was able to extract turn from the wicket squaring up Venasa Ooko with a delivery that spun in before straightening to clip her off stump. Amidst the chaos, Sharon Juma’s 24 off 20 balls was the only resistance of note from Kenya’s batting line-up as they fell 80 runs short of Bangladesh’s total. Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana was all praise for the partnership between Salma Khatun and Ritu Moni. “How they batted in that situation, controlling the pressure. It was absolutely wonderful to watch,” she said. Kenya Skipper Margaret Ngoche was frank in her assessment of Kenya’s batting. “The main areas that we really need to improve on is patience, we were really in a hurry to get runs, even when wickets were falling we did not give ourselves time to recover,” she said. Player of the Match Nahida Akter kept things simple and executed her plans. “From the beginning my plan was to bowl to my strength as much as I can,” she said. Scotland beat Malaysia by 31 runs Kathryn Bryce’s unbeaten 62 helped Scotland post 148 before Katherine Fraser took four for 19 to deliver a 31-run win over Malaysia. After winning the toss and electing to bat, Scotland enjoyed a productive Powerplay. Sarah Bryce clipped a couple of boundaries off her toes with fellow opener Abbi Aitken-Drummond joining in the party. However, left-arm spinner Arianna Natasya dismissed Sarah in her very first over to put a lid on the scoring. Scotland skipper Kathryn Bryce then walked in at three, putting on a 63-run partnership with Aitken-Drummond. Just as it looked like Scotland was pushing a total in the region of 160, they lost four quick wickets. Nik Atiela had both Aitken-Drummond and the aggressive Katie McGill stumped before Mas Elysa chipped in with a pair of wickets for herself. Kathryn Bryce, however, held strong, and continued to pepper the leg side boundary. Her seventh delivery came off the final delivery of the innings as Malaysia were set a target of 149. In reply, Malaysia came storming out of the blocks. Three cover drives from Winifred Duraisingam set the tone for the innings with Wan Julia joining in the fun, walloping left-armer Rachel Slater for four down the ground. However, the tide turned when off-spinner Katherine Fraser was introduced into the attack. Wan Julia chipped a catch to Aitken-Drummond before Duraisingam played inside one to lose her off stump in the very same over. Soon after, Yusrina Yakoop was trapped in front before Mas Elysa lobbed a catch to Kathryn Bryce for Abtaha Maqsood’s first wicket. Leg-spinner Maqsood grabbed her second wicket when she trapped Nur Ilya in front for a duck. When Ainna Hamizah was dismissed by Hannah Rainey, Malaysia were reeling at 69 for seven. However, Intan Jaafar and Nur Zulaika would put on a 45-run partnership with every one of their scoring shots cheered by a vociferous Malysia dugout. The hosts ended on 117 for eight. Malaysia skipper Duraisingam was especially impressed with Malaysia’s ability to keep Scotland’s batters in check through the second half of the first innings. “Yes, Scotland did get off to a good start, but I’m happy that we restricted them,” she said. Scottish captain Kathryn Bryce was pleased with the eventual result but felt that Scotland let Malaysia’s batters stretch the game out on the back of Katherine Fraser’s impressive four-wicket haul. “We didn't execute with the ball at the top of the innings and let them get away, but Katherine Fraser bowled very well again to get us back on top,” she said. Skipper Bryce was also awarded the Player of the Match award, admitting she enjoyed the conditions for batting. “The surface was really good again today with a fast outfield. The ball has been keeping slightly low, but you get rewarded for playing strong shots,” she said. Brief Scores: Bangladesh beat Kenya by 80 runs. Bangladesh 125/6 in 20 Overs; Kenya 45 All Out in 12.4 Overs. Player of the Match: Nahida Akter Scotland beat Malaysia by 31 runs. Scotland 148/5 in 20 Overs; Malaysia 117/8 in 20 Overs. Player of the Match: Kathryn Bryce