With the initial group stages of the U19 Women’s World Cup concluded, the tournament bids farewell to the four teans who finished bottom of their groups: Scotland, the USA, Indonesia and Zimbabwe.
While the USA and Zimbabwe automatically qualified for the inaugural competition Indonesia and Scotland had to win regional qualifiers to reach the tournament. Indonesia won their three-match series against Papua New Guinea to win the East Asia-Pacific group to qualify while the Scots qualified winning the Europe Qualifier , a three-match series against the Netherlands which they whitewashed.
Scotland
The opening game for Scotland was against the UAE — a team who also had to participate in qualifiers to reach the tournament. Emma Walsingham shone with the bat, scoring 37 from 33 however, the team failed to pass the 100 mark and their innings was concluded on 99/9. Maisie Maceira’s bowling was the best on display, registering figures of 2/7 but the UAE comfortably won, reaching the target in the 17th over.
Scotland’s clash against South Africa allowed the side to display their talented bowling line up. Niamh Robertson-Jack walked away with the best figures of 2/12 but it was the skipper, Katherine Fraser who took the most wickets, finishing with figures of 3/25. The batting was the weak point with only three players reaching double figures and South Africa bowled them out for 68.
Scotland drew the short straw having to face both India and South Africa in the group stages. The side also played the UAE who they were more evenly matched with. Against India, they were bowled out for 66 however, a highlight for Scotland has to be Nayma Sheikh getting Shafali Verma out for 1! Darcey Carter also hit 24 from 22, including three 4s and a 6.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom as Scotland faced the USA in a final, dead rubber game, giving them the chance to test themselves once again. Katherine Fraser, yet again, was the stand out player and was awarded the POTM award. Her figures of 3/23 managed to restrict the USA to 147/7 and her contribution with the bat of 59 (47) placed Scotland in prime position to win. It was Molly Paton however, who came to the crease and hit a boundary to secure the 5 wicket win for Scotland with only two balls remaining.
USA
It was the USA’s maiden appearance at a Cricket World Cup — men’s or women’s. They faced experienced sides, Sri Lanka, Australia and Bangladesh and their fourth place game came against Scotland. In their first match, the USA struggled against Sri Lanka’s strong bowling attack — 16-year-old Ritu Singh top scoring on 22. USA attempted to defend their total of 96 with huge efforts from Snigdha Paul (1/2) and Bhumika Bhadriraju (2/17) however, their attempts were futile as Sri Lanka got over the line in the 19th over.
Facing Australia was always going to be difficult for the USA however, Snigdha Paul still managed to top score with 17, the side being bowled out for 64. It was Paul who starred again, this time with the ball, removing Paris Bowlder for 7 but the Aussies managed to win the game within 9 overs.
It was another loss for the USA against Bangladesh but the batting was much more successful setting their highest total of the group games of 103/4. Paul shone, yet again with 26 from 37 but Disha Dhingra also contributed with 20 from 39 and Isani Vaghela and captain, Geetika Kodali, went at a run a ball to score 17 and 16 respectively. With the ball, Aditiba Chudasama took two wickets, bowling a maiden over and Sai Tanmayi Eyyunni performed well finishing with figures of 1/19 from her four overs.
The inequality between teams such as the USA and the full ICC member teams was highlighted when USA U19 player, Geetika Kodali set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for the USA team to be able to train to prepare for the World Cup.
Our goal is to generate enough funds to help the under-19 women in improving our skills as we vie for spots to compete in the inaugural ICC Women’s U19 World Cup in South Africa. We are all high schoolers juggling both school and cricket. We will be grateful for any help you can do for us so that we can focus on playing our best game
USA’s final opportunity was against Scotland who had also lost all their group games. Thanks to an impressive knock of 43 (33) by Laasya Mullapudi, assisted by Disha Dhingra who hit 30 (33) and Ritu Singh 22 (17), USA set 147/7, by far their highest total. Chudasama’s two wickets and Kodali’s wicket of Scotland captain, Katherine Fraser were important contributions however, it was too late as Molly Paton hit the winning runs, sealing victory for Scotland.
Indonesia
Indonesia were one of the best teams to watch in the group stages. The team went in to the competition as one of the most unknown teams but their personality and flair has left a mark on viewers. Although results did not go their way, they relished the opportunity to play against teams such as New Zealand, Ireland, the West Indies and facing England in the warm-up matches.
They were first in action against New Zealand, a country with a strong youth development set up. Desi Wulandari finished 16* and the side ended on 74/7 after witnessing a bowling masterclass by Kiwi, Tash Wakelin who took 3/14. Unfortunately, they did not manage to take a wicket but Ni Luh Dewi was economical giving a glimpse into what she could do.
The West Indies were next and Indonesia had a break through with the bowling. They took three wickets but the West Indies set a mighty total of 176/3. It was Kadek Kurniartini who top scored with 15 (23) however, the West Indies’ Djenaba Joseph had a successful day taking 3/14 which left Indonesia 77 runs short. Despite this, moral was high throughout the whole game with the dugout cheering every single run, singing, dancing and using their water bottles as drumsticks!
Ireland was the next challenge. Ni Ariani took 3/30 with Ni Luh Dewi taking 2/23 but Ireland pushed to reach 156/5. Ni Luh Dewi shone again as she scored 34* from 40 deliveries but Indonesia fell short of the total by 49 runs.
History was made as they beat Zimbabwe in their dead rubber game at the end of the competition. Ni Luh Dewi registered her best figures of 5/18 while Ni Ariani took 2/7 from her four overs. They restricted Zimbabwe to 86/8 and backed it up with their batting, cinching the win in the 19th over.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe had a tough introduction to the tournament facing favourites to win, England. Olinder Chare managed to pick up the wickets of Niamh Holland and Charis Pavely but England soared on to register 199/4. Their batters struggled to leave single figures as they were subject to England’s economical bowling and Grace Scrivens’ wicket-taking display of 4/2.
Chipo Moyo took three wickets against Rwanda in a losing cause while Kudzai Chigora took 2/21. Rwanda set 119/8 and although Natasha Mtomba and Kelly Ndiraya scored 20, Henriette Ishimwe’s double hat-trick, left Zimbabwe all out for 80, falling short of the win by 39 runs.
Pakistan were their last group game opponent and it was captain Kelis Ndhlovu’s chance in the spotlight. She scored 42 from 35 balls, aiding Zimbabwe to a total of 97/6. The team couldn’t get a break through with the bowling and Pakistan’s openers glided to victory in the 11th over.
Against Indonesia, Zimbabwe struggled to get runs as both openers fell for ducks. However, Tawananyasha Marumani and Danielle Meikle both scored 20 (19) and recovered the side to 86/8. Their efforts with the ball were not enough and despite Kelis Ndhlovu’s and Chipo Moyo’s impressive figures of 3/8 and 3/12 respectively, Indonesia took the win in the 19th over.
What happens now?
The U19 Women’s World Cup has provided invaluable opportunities for all these young players, especially those from the associate member teams. The USA’s captain, Geetika Kodali, spoke in her post-match interview against Scotland about how the team had learned so much given the impressive facilities they were able to use and pitches they could play on in South Africa, compared to those in the USA. Many of the Scottish players have earned senior international caps and they will have their eyes on World Cup qualifiers. For Zimbabwe, they may leave feeling somewhat disappointed. Heading into the competition, it was expected that they would have performed better but again, it’s an important experience for these up and coming players. Indonesia needs investment. There is so much potential and there is passion. With these young players coming through, could Indonesia push for senior World Cup qualification?
Comments