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Cavender stars as Scotland claim back-to-back wins over Germany

Jake Perry @CricketScotland
August 4, 2018 6 years
Cavender stars as Scotland claim back-to-back wins over Germany
Photo by Donald Scarr

Match One: Scotland Women U21 161-6 (E Cavender 56, T Gough 2 for 24) beat Germany Women 54-8 (C Scott 2 for 6, I Farooq 2 for 6) by 99 runs (revised target)

Match Two: Scotland Women U21 139-5 (E Cavender 58*, T Gough 2 for 7) beat Germany Women 64-8 (T Gough 20, M McColl 2 for 9) by 75 runs

The old cliché of four seasons in one day was in evidence in Galashiels as Scotland Women U21 completed two comprehensive wins against Germany in the T20 double-header at Meigle Park. On a day which began in cloudy humidity and ended in hot sunshine, punctuated by a heavy shower, two magnificent half centuries from sixteen-year-old Emily Cavender put the icing onto what were two excellent performances from Gordon Allan’s young side.

The changeable weather added to the challenge of batting on what was already a tricky looking surface. From the outset several deliveries popped up off the soft, green track, and with the hot sunshine drying the pitch from the earlier rain, too, Scotland’s greater experience was to tell in both matches as Germany struggled to get their innings going.

In the first game of the day a superb partnership of 91 between Cavender (56) and Megan McColl (28) had formed the backbone of Scotland’s imposing 161 for 6. Sarah Bryce’s 23-ball 41 set her side on their way before Germany struck back with four quick wickets to peg the hosts back to 63 for 4, but with Cavender and McColl subsequently taking control, Cavender bringing up her first half century of the day off 36 deliveries, Scotland posted a total which was never likely to be threatened.

Left-arm seamer Tina Gough (2 for 24) bowled particularly well for the visitors, nipping the ball in off the soft, green surface, but with Scotland’s batters regularly finding gaps in the field the bowling side struggled to put their opponents under any sort of pressure.

Germany’s run-chase got off to the worst possible start as Karthika Vijayaraghavan (1) cut Laura Grant (1 for 3) straight to Ailsa Lister at point, and with Scotland captain Abtaha Maqsood (2 for 16) and Isobel Couttie (1 for 13) claiming early wickets, too, the visitors were soon struggling on 19 for 3 after nine.

The first ten overs of the reply featured no boundaries as Scotland tightened the screw, and despite the weather intervening to reduce Germany’s target to 154 off 19 a further flurry of wickets confirmed what had already become an inevitable outcome. Charis Scott (2 for 6) took two in an over as Germany lost three with the score on 51 before Ikra Farooq (2 for 6) put the seal onto a comfortable win with the wicket of Asmita Kohli (1) off the final ball of the innings.

Ikra Farooq bowls. Photo by Donald Scarr

After their 99-run win earlier in the day Scotland lost Scott (0), Grant (4) and Lister (16) within the first seven overs of the second match after being asked to bat first once again, but Bryce (28) and Cavender then picked up the pace with some aggressive batting. Bryce cleared the rope at midwicket for the first six of the day and although the wicketkeeping all-rounder was to fall two balls later Cavender continued the assault as Scotland pulled away. Cavender’s second fifty of the day arrived off only 27 balls and featured nine fours as the Scots finished on 139 for 5 off their twenty overs.

Faced with another target in excess of a run a ball Germany again faltered, losing Stephanie Frohnmeyer (0) in the first over as she mistimed a catch to Maqsood. Bianca Maes (2) soon followed, McColl (2 for 9) claiming her second wicket, and when Maqsood effected the run out of Karthika Vijayaraghavan (8) in the eighth, Germany were again in trouble at 19 for 3.

Sarah Bryce completes a run out. Photo by Donald Scarr

All-rounder Gough (20) and Anuradha Doddaballapur (11) offered brave resistance but after the two fell in close succession, the latter run out after hesitation in going for a quick single before a sharp catch by Maqsood at midwicket to dismiss Gough, Germany’s innings fell away quickly to confirm Scotland’s second win of the day.

“I’m very happy,” said Abtaha Maqsood. “We hadn’t really played together as a squad before, our first game together was only on Wednesday, but the way we all came together and played as a team was really nice to see.
“It was tricky to bat out there with the pitch and it was pretty windy too but we still got two good scores on the board. Bowling into the wind wasn’t easy so I’m really pleased with our performances.

“It’s been a good day. Everyone contributed and for Emily in her first game to get two fifties is amazing.”
“It’s been a great learning experience for us today,” said Germany captain Anuradha Doddaballapur. “Most of us don’t get to play on grass pitches in Germany so conditions-wise this is something for us to learn from.

“I think we did pretty well in our bowling and batting. It was good to play against spin because again we don’t have the chance to do that very often in Germany and that’s something we want to work on. There are quite a few young girls in the squad as well, for some it’s their first tour with the national team, so I think overall it was a great experience for everyone. It’s lovely to be able to play in Scotland, too, although it’s hard not to be distracted by the scenery!”

Germany’s tour now continues in the north of England.

“We’re based in Ashington for the next four or five days,” she said. “We have two games against Northumberland Women and then against Durham. It’s been really good for us and for German cricket, to see the standard we are pitching against.

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