Maia Bouchier‘s whirlwind 62* off 34 deliveries and Wyatt-Hodge’s swashbuckling 51* off 26 balls helped England chase down Scotland’s measly total of 113 runs inside only 10 overs. The openers Maia Bouchier and Wyatt-Hodge played attacking Cricket from the word-go. The former one was dropped early but there was no looking back since then. Both the openers found the gaps to pure perfection and hammered the Scottish bowlers ins and outs.
The manner of the victory, sealed with a boundary by Maia Bouchier, whose unbeaten 62 is now the tournament’s highest individual score, also saw England boast an NRR higher than West Indies. They square off on Tuesday in what is a knockout encounter, though both teams could mathematically still go through together at the expense of South Africa.
Pitch and Toss
Pitch Report: There’s 4m difference between the square boundaries and the straight boundary is 73m. If you look at this surface, there will be excitement as there’s some green on the surface. It’s to hold the surface together. Spin is the way to go on this pitch. Batting first is the way to go and how the batters play against spin will be the key, reckons Pommie Mbangwa
Scotland Women Team skipper Kathryn Bryce won the toss and chose to bat with one change in the playing XI bringing in McColl for Chatterji. England Women’s Team skipper Heather Knight bowling first made two changes in the playing XI with Alice and Smith being replaced by Sophie Dunkley and Bell
English bowlers restricts Scotland to 109 for 6 in 20 overs
Earlier, having won the toss and opted to bat in their first-ever T20I meeting, Scotland got off to a steady start against England in the desert climes of Sharjah.
Openers Sarah Bryce and Saskia Horley negotiated the powerplay unscathed, but struggled to up the scoring rate, putting on a partnership of 38 in eight overs before Horley was caught off Nat Sciver-Brunt for 13 (23). Captain Kathryn Bryce added some impetus into the innings, finding the boundary with some stylish shots, aided first by her sister Sarah (27 from 31) and then Ailsa Lister (11 from 14).
But England kept on taking wickets to deny Scotland an opportunity to launch, and when Charlie Dean bowled Kathryn Bryce for a 28-ball 33 at the end of the 17th over, any chances of a sizeable score had largely evaporated. Hard-run contributions down the order from Megan McColl (10* from 11) and Katherine Fraser (6* from 6) ensured Scotland did bring up their century, finishing on 109/6.
Once again it was Sophie Ecclestone who returned the pick of the figures for England with the ball, taking 2/13 in her four overs. Sciver-Brunt, Dean, Danielle Gibson and Lauren Bell also picked up wickets.
Scotland who opted to bat, started steadily as Sarah Bryce found the occasional boundary. But Lauren Bell and Sophie Ecclestone conceded only two each in their first overs, keeping the scoring rate in check and tying down Saskia Horley. In an attempt to keep the scoreboard ticking, Bryce survived a run-out chance having taken-off for a single after punting the ball straight to mid-off. Scotland ended a rather sedate PowerPlay at 29 for 0.
Horley’s misery came to an end when she holed out to Ecclestone at mid-off in the eighth over. At the other end, Bryce hit a beautiful inside-out shot off Sarah Glenn which raced to the boundary. But another quiet over from Charlie Dean meant that the Scots had to go after Ecclestone. They did so at their own peril, as Bryce was stumped off the left-arm spinner. Right-handed batter Ailsa Lister then hit Scotland’s first six of the T20 World Cup with a slog-sweep over mid-wicket.
England picked up Lister soon after while Lorna Jack-Brown walked back for a duck in her last international match. Bryce hit two quick boundaries before she was castled by Dean and Darcey Carter fell to Ecclestone as the bowler picked up her second of the game. Nat Sciver-Brunt thought she had bowled Katherine Fraser as the ball had hit leg-stump but the bails didn’t come off and the ball raced away for four, bringing up Scotland’s 100.
Scotland were able to sign off with their highest total after winning the toss and electing to bat. Skipper Kathryn Bryce’s 33 off 28 – the only Scottish batter to strike at more than a run a ball – provided the backbone of the innings, as she batted through to the end of the 17th over, having arrived for the start of the ninth. Her sister Sarah Bryce opened with 27 from 31, the only other score of note, though Alisa Lister had the honor of hitting Scotland’s first six at a major tournament when she slog-swept Sarah Glenn in the 13th over.
England kept their opponents in check throughout, though they did fail to take a wicket in the powerplay for the first time in six matches as Sarah and Saskia Horley made it through the opening six overs, albeit for just 29. Sophie Ecclestone, as ever, was the pick of the bowlers, the left-arm spinner finishing with 2 for 13 from her four overs.
Lauren Bell, making her first appearance of the tournament with England keen to make use of a pitch now conducive to seam, finished with 1 for 16. She was one of two changes for Heather Knight’s charges, with Sophia Dunkley replacing Alice Capsey. Capsey had been unwell in the week, with the management deciding not to take any risks, especially with the heat in England’s day game of the competition.
Bell bowled Lorna Jack-Brown, who ended her international career with a three-ball duck. She finishes as the most-capped player in Scotland’s history.
Maia Bouchier and Wyatt Hodge sets up aggressive 10 wickets win for England
With a target of 110 to win, England raced to the winning post in dramatic fashion, with openers Maia Bouchier and Danni Wyatt-Hodge both scoring half-centuries in a total of 113/0 in just ten overs. Maia Bouchier was the initial aggressor, hitting 12 fours in her phenomenal 62* from just 34 balls.
But Wyatt-Hodge lit the touchpaper after initially bedding in, ending with a faster strike rate, scoring 51* from just 26 deliveries. The margin and speed of England’s chase gives them a big and potentially decisive net run rate boost in Group, with one game against West Indies still to come.
With a chase of 110, Maia Bouchier put her foot on the pedal straight away with three consecutive boundaries off Rachel Slater. To make matters worse for Scotland, Maia Bouchier was dropped in the next over by Olivia Bell off her own bowling. Two overs later, Danielle Wyatt-Hodge laid into Bell with three fours while Maia Bouchier topped it with a fourth in an 18-run over. England reached 50 in just 4.4 overs.
The two batters did not spare any bowler as they scored at least 10 runs in eight out of ten overs. Maia Bouchier swept Fraser for four to bring up her fifty off 30 balls. A comedy of errors allowed England to run a three towards the end as Wyatt-Hodge too brought up her 50. Bouchier sealed proceedings with a four over square-leg as England became the first team to register 150 wins in Women’s T20Is.
England would have been confident in their ability to chase down such a total against a much lower-ranked side, but few would have predicted the ease and speed with which they were able to do so, scoring at a rate not seen previously by any team at this tournament. The impact of Maia Bouchier will be a particular boon to England, for whom Wyatt-Hodge has done much of the heavy lifting at the top of the order in recent times.
Maia Bouchier’s strokeplay hinted at the threat England can pose to their main title rivals, and she was deservedly named Player of the Match for her superb 62*.Scotland used six bowlers in all, with none having an economy rate under ten an over, as England flexed their muscles.
England have stamped their authority with every possible way. The openers Maia Bouchier and Wyatt-Hodge played attacking Cricket from the word-go. The former one was dropped early but there was no looking back since then. Both the openers found the gaps to pure perfection and hammered the Scottish bowlers ins and outs.
Maia Bouchier brought up her fifty off just 30 balls and then Wyatt-Hodge followed her as she took only 26 balls to reach to the landmark. Both of them steered their team to the shores with 10 overs to spare and 10 wickets in hands. With the thumping victory over Scotland, England are the table toppers of Group B.
The peculiarity of England’s day was clear when they left their hotel for this match as Bangladesh were checking out to head home. The 2009 champions had only played two so far while some other teams had completed their group-stage programme. That included South Africa, who sat top of Group B on Sunday morning, with West Indies level on four points with England but in second with a greater NRR – by 1.055 – but having played a game more.
With everything laid out before England, the calculations at half-time were straightforward. Reach the necessary 110 in 11.5 overs or fewer to wrestle away the top spot from South Africa, and 9.3 overs or fewer to trump West Indies’ NRR. Though they did not manage the latter, Maia Bouchier’s step across and heave over the leg side for four at the end of the tenth over saw England achieve both side quests with the necessary win.
Though Scotland were particularly wayward with their lines, Maia Bouchier and Wyatt-Hodge were brutal. They struck England’s first century opening stand in T20 World Cups since 2012, from just 54 deliveries. They also pocketed the fastest team fifty of this edition in just 4.4 overs, and the largest powerplay at 66 for 0.
Maia Bouchier began the chase with three fours from the first three balls, delivered by left-armer Rachel Slater, on her way to a third career half-century from just 30 deliveries. Wyatt-Hodge’s 17th 50-plus score in T20Is was six balls quicker. Nothing summed up the pair’s understanding of the assignment more than the ten clinical fours they hit in a 16-ball sequence from the start of the fourth over.
Presentations and Road Ahead
Kathryn Bryce the Scotland women skipper said : It’s been a disappointing run for us but honored to lead my side. It was challenging for us, for the first time we were playing against different sides in a new stadium. They (crowd) were brilliant, they were cheering for us no matter what happened. (On Lorna Jack Brown’s retirement) She has been there in the side for 18 years. She has been a huge part of the Scotland journey, it has been a special career for her.
Heather Knight the England women skipper said : Very pleased, the pitch got better later. Actually, we allowed them to get a few more runs but happy with the result. [Bouchier] She hit the first three balls for fours and then she went on from there. Once we had a great powerplay it was about how quickly to finish it off and put pressure on the other teams. We talked about getting over South Africa.
Credit to how both of them batted. Really pleased, we have got so many options. Linsey has done nothing wrong but we wanted to get Bell in the competition. (On Lauren Bell) She was outstanding, slightly different role for her bowling in the middle overs and Sophie was brilliant as well. (On their next match against WI) We will try and win just the way we approached the last two games. We want to go again and keep the momentum going.
Maia Bouchier Player of the Match for her 62 runs said : I felt really good, batting with Danny is always easy. We have an unspoken communication, we tried to hit straight down the gound and run between the wickets hard, which would help us win. We were told about the 8th over that we needed to get it done before the 10th over, this tournament is fine margins and the bowlers did brilliantly.
Of course we want to take the trophy, but we want to think about the present and not think about what others are doing. We need to keep our calm going into the next two games. Kept saying to myself to be still and watch the ball, Danny kept reminding me too, I back myself to go and win games for my country.
England have stamped their authority to clinch this game with consummate ease. The moment they restricted Scotland to 109 on a surface which played much better than a typical Sharjah pitch, they were the favourites. Ecclestone was the pick of the bowlers and she found good support from the others as well.
Sarah Bryce and Kathryn Bryce played handy cameos but that was never going to be enough. In reply, the English openers, Maia Bouchier and Danielle Wyatt-Hodge played attacking cricket from the word-go. The former was dropped early but there was no looking back after that. Both the openers picked the gaps to perfections and scored boundaries consistently.
Bouchier brought up her fifty off 30 balls and then Danielle followed up with a 26-ball fifty to take their side home with 10 overs to spare. The Scottish bowlers crumbled under the big hits and kept leaking runs. A disappointing end to Scotland’s campaign. England meanwhile are going from strength to strength.
England’s superlative performance with the bat in the game has propelled their NRR up and they jump to the top position in Group B. Scotland’s first T20 World Cup campaign was a disappointing one as they lost all their four games but they will learn a lot from these experiences.
The manner of the result means that England now have the best net run rate in Group B, so could conceivably still lose to West Indies in their final group match and still qualify, as long as the margin of defeat is narrow enough that their NRR doesn’t slip below South Africa’s.
The winners of England versus West Indies on Tuesday will be guaranteed a spot in the final four of this World Cup. But the losers could still make it through in the event of two extreme scenarios. Should West Indies make 201 or more and win, England could still sneak in if the margin of defeat is just a single run. Similarly, they could lose in a Super Over and make it through provided they match a West Indies score of 194 or more in the regulation 20 overs.
Both seem highly unlikely given the way the pitch has been playing at Sharjah. But fans of South African cricket know all too well that World Cup heartbreak can take many peculiar forms. It was dispiriting for Scotland to end their first women’s World Cup with three heavy defeats. Callous ones at that, given West Indies, South Africa and England knew they had to match each other’s dominance against the international tournament debutants.
After a promising opener against Bangladesh, the gulf between Scotland and the top tier of women’s cricket has been made abundantly clear over the last seven days. But the tournament as a whole has been a necessary growing pain for a team looking to establish themselves at this level.
There were flashes of promise alongside the expected quality of Kathryn and Sarah Bryce, who ended as the team’s leading run-scorers. Had Olivia Bell held on to a return catch from Bouchier when the batter had just 17, she would have maintained her streak of taking a wicket in every match. That three of their four matches were day games – this was England’s first – was its own unique challenge, with temperatures in Sharjah constantly in the mid to late 30s.
Considering they were granted ODI status in 2022, with professional contracts only introduced in 2023, this can be marked down as another important step in the right direction for Scottish women’s cricket. The margin and speed of England’s chase gives them a big and potentially decisive net run rate boost in Group, with one game against West Indies still to come.