PNG SHOCK THAILAND AS THEY DEFEND 92 TO WIN BY EIGHT RUNS

PNG SHOCK THAILAND AS THEY DEFEND 92 TO WIN BY EIGHT RUNS

The first shock result of the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy being held in Bangkok saw the hosts beaten by Papua New Guinea by eight runs despite chasing only 93 runs to win but Scotland held on to beat Tanzania by five runs to become the only side to win two matches out of two on an exciting day marked by close finishes.

Papua New Guinea chose to bat first after they won the toss at TCG on the second day of the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy but they were soon regretting that decision as Thailand’s bowling attack applied the pressure from the start.

Medium pace bowler Phannita Maya claimed the first wicket as Brenda Tau who had scored a defiant fifty against UAE the previous day fell lbw for 10 in the third over with the score on 15 and Henao Thomas was run out by Suleeporn Laomi at the end of the fourth over with another single added and PNG had made only 22 for 2 by the end of the powerplay.

It was Laomi, player of the match against Netherlands, who took the ball in the next over and she made an immediate impact with her leg-spin as Miria Raio lobbed a simple catch to mid-wicket off her very first ball. Opener Naoani Vare was then brilliantly caught and bowled off the third ball of the over and Hollan Doriga was caught by Onnicha Kamchomphu on the boundary from the fifth ball. Laomi had followed her 2 for 11 with three wickets for one run in her first over as PNG slipped to 23 for 5 with all five wickets lost for eight runs.

That was the end of the wicket-taking for the Thai leg-spinner who had taken five wickets in her first five overs of the tournament but she was well supported by off-spinner Sunida Chaturongrattana who took 2 for 16 in her 4 overs. Laomi’s final figures were 3 for 14 but PNG did manage to bat out their innings with the eighth and ninth wickets lost both falling to run outs.

Isabel Toua had come in at number eight for PNG and she did well to top-score on 25 to see her side from 41 for six to a final total of 92 for nine before being dismissed from the last ball of the innings. Phannita Maya finished with 1 for 11 from her four overs but the spinners shared five wickets to go with three run outs as PNG probably had more runs on the board than they had expected after Laomi’s three wicket over.

PNG had lost their opening match to UAE by eight wickets when defending a total of 94 but they gained early success with the ball against Thailand. Geua Tom bowled Chanida Sutthiruang in her first over for 1 and also bowled Nannapat Khoncharoenkai for 0 as Thailand were two wickets down with only four runs scored in the fourth over.

Thailand’s two most experienced players Nattaya Boochatham and Natthakan Chantham were together at the crease with work to do and Natthakan stroked an early boundary but Thailand had only scored 13 for two by the end of the powerplay. Nattaya did not last long afterwards as she was bowled by the medium pace of Pauke Siake for 8 from 22 balls as captain Naruemol Chaiwai came to the crease.

Natthakan has made runs in recent matches but Naruemol has not spent much time at the crease and runs remained hard to come by as Thailand edged to 15 after 8 overs and PNG continued to bowl well with a succession of dot balls until Natthakan hit her second boundary. Naruemol also found the boundary but Thailand had only reached 24 for 3 after 10 overs with 59 runs needed in the second half of their innings.

Thailand lost their fourth wicket on 36 in the 13^th over when Natthakan, the mainstay of their batting, was caught at cover off Siaka as the PNG pace bowlers continued to cause trouble as Thailand are struggling to get their run-rate above three runs an over. With five overs left the score was 41 for 4 with 52 more required.

Singles wouldn’t be enough for Thailand but just four runs were scored from the 16^th over but at last Naruemol cleared mid off to score just the sixth boundary of the innings but Suleeporn was bowled by left-arm spinner Hane Tau for 5 off 13 balls to leave he home side on 53 for 5 from 17 overs.

Naruemol was finding her fluency with a four through the off-side and a pull through the leg-side as 14 runs came off the 18^th over. 26 runs were needed from the last two overs with the Thai captain now on 33 and she hit another boundary to start the 19^th over. The pressure was now on the PNG fielders but Rosanenee Kanoh couldn’t support her captain as she was bowled for 3. Phannita scrambled a leg-bye and Naruemol managed a single as 17 were needed off the last over.

The captain hit a single but Phannita hit a scoop for four before being lbw when attempting a pull. Onnicha was facing and a bye was run then Naruemol could hit only two and she was out caught off the last ball of the innings. PNG had stunned the home side by beating them by eight runs as Thailand finished on 84 for 7.

Naruemol had made 44 from 40 balls with six fours which may be a good sign for the rest of the tournament but it is bitter disappointment that they could lose a match after reducing their opponents to 23 for 5 after 7 overs. It was the first time that PNG had beaten Thailand in T20I cricket.

The PNG bowlers had kept the pressure on Thailand throughout the innings with Pauke Siaka outstanding with figures of 4 for 12 but Isabel Toua backed her up by bowling 4 overs for 13 with her leg-spin to follow her innings of 25 from 25 balls to rescue PNG’s innings so that the champions of the EAP region could enjoy one of the greatest victories in their history.

At AIT, in the other game played in the morning Netherlands, surprised UAE who had beaten PNG by eight wickets on the first day as the Dutch bowled out the opposition for 93 in 17.4 overs as four bowlers claimed two wickets apiece and only Heena Hotchandani gave serious resistance with the bat as she reached 30 from 39 balls.

Sterre Kalis is a class act so she took her side to the verge of victory as she made a fluent 40 from 43 balls with 5 fours and a six although Vaishnave Mahesh claimed three wickets for 22 to keep UAE in the match before Netherlands won with six wickets down and seven balls to spare.

The afternoon match at TCG was even more low-scoring than the contest in the morning as Namibia who had lost to Tanzania on day one this time held off African opponents as they defended at total of 83 for 8 to beat Uganda by 12 runs. Kayleen Green top-scored for Namibia with 21 but Uganda looked to be in a comfortable position as they reached 49 with only one wicket down but slow left-arm bowler Leigh-Marie Visser was outstanding on her debut as she transformed the match with figures of 3 for 10 as Uganda were restricted to 71 for 7.

In the last game to finish at AIT, Scotland hit the highest total so far in the competition as they reached 153 for 5 in their 20 overs against Tanzania as Darcey Carter remained unbeaten for the second successive match as she hit 76* in 62 balls with 9 fours and a six in the highest individual score so far.

Tanzania who had beaten Namibia on day one made a valiant effort to chase down such a high score as their openers Shaum Mtae and Fatuma Kibasu shared a stand of 58 in 7.3 overs before Hudaa Omary and Jenipher Kimaro got their side close to an unlikely victory. Tanzania fell just short as they reached 148 for 8 to lose by just five runs as Scotland became the only side to win both their first two matches. Carter added figures of 3 for 23 to her 76 to be named the player of the match as Omary finished on 38 not out with her side falling just short of a famous victory.