Day 4 Wrap: Rwanda seal historic first World Cup win; New Zealand, England and West Indies march on
RWANDA’S FIGHT TOO GOOD FOR ZIMBABWE
Toss: Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bowl
Result: Rwanda won by 39 runs
Rwanda won a crucial encounter against Zimbabwe to bolster their chances of making it to the Super Six stage of the tournament.
Merveille Uwase (18 from 33) and Cynthia Tuyizere (30 from 44) were watchful yet solid in a partnership of 49, as Rwanda focussed on saving their wickets in the first 10 overs. An aggressive knock from skipper Gisele Ishimwe (34 from 23) guided them to a competitive total of 119/8.
Coming off a number of poor batting performances, Zimbabwe were immediately put under pressure by a disciplined Rwanda. By the 12th over, the asking rate had jumped to over eight runs an over.
After the settled Kelly Ndiraya (20 from 38) fell to a brilliant diving catch from Sylvia Usabyimana, Zimbabwe lost the plot and never came close to their target. Henriette Ishimwe ended their misery with a superb double hat-trick (4/13).
This is Rwanda’s first win at an ICC World Cup.
ENGLAND CRUISE PAST OUTGUNNED PAKISTAN
Toss: England won the toss and chose to bat first
Result: England won by 53 runs
Grace Scrivens (24 from 21) and a quickfire 13 off 8 from Niamh Holland helped England get off to a quick start, but three powerplay wickets kept things in check for Pakistan.
However, Seren Smale (37 from 33) and Ryana Macdonald-Gay (35* from 22) lifted England to a decent first innings total of 156/7 that proved well out of Pakistan’s reach.
An extremely controlled bowling performance saw Pakistan fall way behind the run rate. Shawaal Zulfiqar (25 off 32) and Syeda Aroob Shah (34 from 36) made the most notable contributions with the bat, but all eight England bowlers returned tidy figures to ensure that the chase never picked up significant momentum.
Pakistan finished on 103/5, still 53 runs short, with Scrivens (1/9 from 3 overs), Hannah Baker (1/13 from 3) and Sophia Smale (2/10 from 3) the wicket-takers.
JAMES AND JOSEPH IMPRESS IN WEST INDIES WIN
Toss: West Indies won the toss and chose to bat first
Result: West Indies won by 77 runs
Zaida James scored her second half-century of the tournament to set up a comfortable win for West Indies against a spirited Indonesia outfit.
James (55 from 37) and opening partner Shunelle Sawh (31 off 36) put on 95 for the first wicket, setting the platform for their side to reach a daunting total of 176/3 – with Trishan Holder doing some explosive late damage with a 14-ball 35*.
In reply, Indonesia gave it a decent go, with each of their top three reaching double figures as their teammates cheered on from the dugout, intent on enjoying the World Cup experience.
But such a chase was always likely to be out of their reach, and wickets soon tumbled.
James added a wicket in returns of 1/21 to add to her 55 runs in the game, yet it was Djenaba Joseph who was the standout performer with the ball. Joseph took 3/14 in her four overs and also produced one of three run-outs as Indonesia closed out their 20 overs on 99/9, still 77 runs short.
New Zealand down disappointing Ireland
Toss: Ireland won the toss and chose to bat
Result: New Zealand won by 9 wickets
Ireland collapsed on a good batting wicket to hand New Zealand an easy win.
Already weakened by the loss of skipper Amy Hunter due to an injury, Ireland's batters compounded their problem by losing four wickets, two of them to poor running between wickets, during the powerplay overs. The innings never recovered from this start as they were shot out for 95. Medium pacer Natasha Codyre (3/6) was the pick of New Zealand's bowlers.
The Kiwis made merry with the bat on a decent strip to chase down the target with 79 balls to spare. Having lost both their group games so far, Ireland will need to be at their best against Indonesia to make it to the next stage of the tournament.
