LEEDS: Danielle Wyatt played a brilliant 87-run knock, coupled with a combined bowling effort led England women to defeat Pakistan by 34 runs in the third T20I to clean sweep the three-match series here on Sunday.
Chasing 177, Pakistan women’s team was restricted to 142/4 in 20 overs, courtesy of economical bowling by England at Headingley.
Pakistan openers Gull Feroza and Sidra Ameen started the pursuit cautiously, scoring 60 off 55 for the first wicket.
Sophie Ecclestone ended Ameen’s anchoring knock of 26 runs from 29 deliveries with the help of five boundaries.
Feroza followed her partner to the pavilion in the next over as she was dismissed by Charlie Dean after scoring 30 off 29.
Pakistan lost two more wickets in quick succession, slipping to 73-4 in 11.4 overs.
With 104 required off 50 balls, Pakistan captain Nida Dar and Aliya Riaz joined hands to complete the marathon chase.
However, England’s economic bowling did not allow them to meet the increasing required run rate.
Dar and Riaz raised an unbeaten 69 run-stand but failed to take the team across the finish line.
Riaz top-scored for Pakistan with 35 off 27, while Dar scored 29 off 24 as Pakistan managed 142-4 in their allocated 20 overs.
For England, Dean, Ecclestone, Lauren Filer, and Danielle Gibson bagged one wicket each.
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Earlier, England chose to bat first and Danielle Wyatt cautiously started the innings with a one-sided partnership with Maia Bouchier (8) before Bouchier was run out in the sixth over with 36 runs on the board.
Wyatt was joined by Nat Sciver-Brunt, who scored a meagre eight runs in 10 balls and fell prey to Dar in the ninth over.
England’s skipper Heather Knight then joined a settled Wyatt on the crease. Wyatt switched gears and attacked Pakistan bowlers, while Knight played an anchor’s role.
Wyatt scored 47 runs during the 59-run stand for the third wicket, raising the team’s total to 118 before Diana Baig ended her entertaining knock.
She top-scored for England with 87 runs from 48 balls with the help of 13 boundaries, including one six.
Dar removed Knight (12) while Alice Capsey got run out in the same over as England slipped to 122-5 in the 15th over.
Wicketkeeper Amy Jones then played a 26-run cameo off 15 balls to drag the team’s total to 162 amidst falling wickets from the other end. Jones was dismissed by Fatima Sana in the penultimate over.
Baig bowled the final over for Pakistan, taking two wickets, while Lauren Filer got run out on the last ball to finish England’s innings at 176.
Baig returned with figures of 3-26, while Dar claimed three wickets for 45 runs.
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