Thai women hold nerve for four-wicket upset of Sri Lanka

Monday, 11 June 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Thailand women held their nerve to pull off an upset four-wicket win off the last ball of their Women’s T20 Asia Cup match against Sri Lanka on Saturday (9 June).

Wongpaka Liengprasert took 5/12 in her four overs and came back to hit the winning runs in a vital 9-ball 13* at the Royal Selangor Club, Kuala Lumpur. It was Thailand’s second win of the tournament.

Put in, Sri Lanka raced off the mark through Yasoda Mendis, who struck four boundaries in her 15-ball 22. The opening pair had added 31 in 3.2 overs when Captain Sornnarin Tippoch had Mendis caught and bowled.

After that, the scoring rate drastically slowed. A combination of smart fielding and Liengprasert’s bowling had Sri Lanka in trouble.

Opener Anushka Sanjeewani held firm at one end for a patient 32 off 45 balls, but she quickly ran out of partners. Oshadi Ranasinghe (20) at No.8 was the only other batter to get to double figures as Sri Lanka were all out for 104 in 20 overs.

Thailand’s first-wicket pair got them off to a steady if not spectacular start. Naruemol Chaiwai anchored the chase, adding 43 and 34 runs for the first- and second-wicket stands respectively.

When she fell for 43 off 56 balls, her side still needed 28 off 29 balls. They suffered a slight wobble under pressure, but Liengprasert, coming in at No.6 in the 18th over, completed an all-round excellent day in the park.