Lahore Blues vs Federally Administered Tribal Areas - Commentary

Right then! That is it from this game! The action from Women's World Cup continues and we have a double-header coming up on Tuesday, 22nd March. It will be South Africa Women taking on Australia Women in the first game of the day which begins at 3.30 am IST (10 pm GMT, previous night). The second game of the day sees a clash between India Women and Bangladesh Women. This fixture will begin at 6.30 am IST (1 am GMT) but you can tune in early for both these games as our build-up will begin much earlier. Cheers!

Bismah Maroof, the skipper of Pakistan Women, says that they are relieved and wanted this win badly. Adds that they played well as a unit and would be looking to continue with the momentum. Tells that they wanted to trust their process and didn't think about the end result. Mentions that Muneeba Ali played well at the start and she batted brilliantly. Says, they want to improve on their mistakes and move forward.

Stafanie Taylor, the skipper of West Indies Women, says that they were looking to score somewhere around 125, but once she came to bat she thought 110 would be good enough. Mentions that the way they played against Bangladesh, they were choked by the spinners and they could not rotate the strike, and the same thing happened here against Pakistan. Informs that Pakistan's spinners did bowl really well. States that they have not been playing their best cricket, and it's a do-or-die situation for them against South Africa.

Nida Dar is the PLAYER OF THE MATCH for her heroics with the ball. She says that they desperately needed this win and all the girls were ready for the game. Mentions that she was only thinking to bowl in good areas, but she has played her role and she is happy. Informs that as a senior player she is a role model for her teammates and she needed to handle all the pressure. Adds that she is a fan of Shahid Afridi and hence she celebrates like him. Concludes by saying that this win was an inspiration to everyone in Pakistan.

... THE PRESENTATION ...

Earlier in the day, it was the rain that kept us waiting for a long period of time but the groundstaff did an amazing job and we were fortunate to get a 20-over game. West Indies Women were favorites going into a 20-over game but Pakistan's spinners had some other plans. It was their spinners who spun a web around Windies' batters and then it was their skipper, Bismah Maroof who led from the front and took her side over the line along with Omaima Sohail.

West Indies Women had a tough task of defending 90 runs and they weren't up to the mark with the ball and also dropped a couple of catches which didn't help their cause either. They needed wickets in quick succession and Pakistan Women denied that. In the end, West Indies Women managed to grab only a couple of wickets and they would be very disappointed with their performance.

Pakistan Women needed just 90 runs off 120 balls but it wasn't going to be an easy chase. They did lose Sidra Ameen early on in the innings but their youngster, Muneeba Ali, who was also playing her first World Cup game, batted sensibly and it was her innings that set the tone for Pakistan Women. Their skipper, Bismah Maroof along with Omaima Sohail batted well and they ensured that there weren't any more hiccups before they get over the line.

Finally, Pakistan Women get a win under their belt. They have also ended their losing streak of 18 games in the Women's World Cup. A comfortable victory in the end for them and it is their bowlers who should be credited for the way they bowled in the first innings. Pakistani batters batted with intent and showed a lot of composure on a tricky surface and in the end, they performed better in all three departments than their opposition.

Deandra Dottin comes into the attack.