Bangladesh defeated the United Arab Emirates by five wickets in their final Group 1, Super Six fixture, but it was not enough to secure passage into the semi-finals of the inaugural ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa.

Disha Biswas and her charges were left to rue the margins of net run-rate, when they ended on the same number of points as India and Australia in the standings. The two nations, sitting on a superior net run rate, saw the entertaining Bangladesh team reach the end of their World Cup road.

In their final encounter, Biswas and her team knew that they had to win substantially to stand any chance of progress. The UAE won the toss and chose to bat first, but quickly lost two wickets in the first over.

Lavanya Keny’s 29 from 46 balls was the mainstay of the innings, watching on as five wickets fell on the other side during her 17-over stay. She did receive some support from Mahika Gaur (17 off 27 balls), but no one else was able to go beyond double figures for the UAE.

Keny herself was eventually bowled out by the impressive Rabeya, who added two scalps in the final over of the innings to end her tournament with a fine spell of three for 14 in four overs. Rabeya has been a constant source of inspiration for Bangladesh and can be proud of her achievements in South Africa.

Ultimately, UAE ended on 69 for nine in their 20 overs, thanks to tight bowling and sharp fielding from Bangladesh. Marufa Akter’s two wickets early on saw her close with figures of two for 16.

The chase for Bangladesh was frenetic, as they sought quick runs. It saw them lose wickets along the way, with Indhuja Nadakumar picking up two upfront. Shorna Akter then blasted 38 from just 19 balls, drilling two sixes and four boundaries to the fence.

Try as she might, the light had faded on Bangladesh’s hopes, and she also departed just before the end. She had her off-stump trimmed by Samaira Dharnidharka, who also picked up a pair of wickets.

Rabeya hit two boundaries in a breezy 14 off 13 balls, and Mst Unnoti Akter was on hand to hit the winning boundary, with Biswas at the other end.

It was a victory, but not quite the one Bangladesh needed to advance to the final four. They had arrived in South Africa on a mission to emulate their U19 male counterparts – who won the World Cup in South Africa – but they fell agonizingly short of reaching the knockout stages.

Unbeaten England set up semi-final clash against Australia

England continued to go untested with another dominant victory in their last Super Six match of the ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup, this time by 95 runs over the West Indies at JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom.

Going into the match, England needed to repeat what they had done in winning all of their previous matches – win heavily – to guarantee top spot in Group 2. Captain, Grace Scrivens led the charge with a fiery half-century, guiding her side to a total of 179/4 while tournament best bowling figures of 5/12 by Ellie Anderson helped restrict the Windies to 84/8, the victory securing a semi-final against rivals, Australia on Friday.

The other semi-final will be played between Group 1 winners India and New Zealand.

Like they have done all tournament, England elected to bat after winning the toss and the explosive opening duo of Scrivens and Liberty Heap immediately warmed to their task with a brisk 44-run partnership in the powerplay.

Scrivens – who had scores of 45, 24, 51 and 93 going into this clash – was the dominant partner and weighed in with an entertaining 56 that came from 43 balls, including five fours and two sixes.

Heap’s was the first wicket down and only managed 13, but Charis Pavely (29 not out from 16 balls, five fours), Seren Smale (28 not out from 19 balls, three fours) and Niamh Holland (21 off 21, four boundaries) all kept the scorers busy en route to ensuring a challenging total of 179 for four.

As much as they played with intent, they were given a leg-up by lethargic fielding by the West Indies, who dropped catches and missed run-out opportunities, topped off by extras also climbing up to 23.

Captain, Ashmini Munisar, with figures of 2/32 and Asabi Callender (1/28), did their best to stem the tide with the ball, but the malaise ran deep, with the West Indies penalised for slow over rates towards the end of the England innings.

In their batting reply, the Windies’ quickly slumped to 8/2 and never recovered despite Djenaba Joseph’s best efforts which featured an unbeaten 44 (42 balls, six fours) with the bat, the regular fall of wickets though, ensuring a procession between the middle and the pavilion.

Content courtesy: ICC Business Corporation FZ LLC 2020 via Online Media Zone.