Scotland 167-4 (KE Bryce 73*, SJ Bryce 65, HDJ Siegers 2 for 22) beat The Netherlands 97 (M Veringmeier 45, A Maqsood 3 for 27) by 69 runs
Scotland claimed fifth place at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier after overrunning the Netherlands at Lochlands. Dominant half-centuries from Kathryn and Sarah Bryce saw their side to a mammoth total of 167 for 4 before Sarah completed five stumpings as Scotland bowled out their European rivals for only 97 in reply.
After winning the toss and deciding to bowl first, early ill-discipline saw the Netherlands give away five wides off the first two overs before Iris Zwilling claimed the wicket of Lorna Jack (5), the Scotland opener’s leading edge finding Caroline de Lange at mid-on. The Bryce sisters quickly took control, however, Kathryn powering a four through mid-on before sweeping to the rope in consecutive balls from Eva Lynch to take the score past 50 in the eighth. Silver Siegers came in for similarly harsh treatment from the Scotland captain in the next as the fifty partnership quickly arrived. Scotland, at 66 for 1, were motoring.
The pair’s aggressive running added to the pressure on the fielding side as the sisters kept the run-rate at more than seven. Netherlands captain Juliet Post returned to Zwilling in a bid to find a breakthrough, but quick singles, supplemented by Kathryn’s cut for four, saw the eleventh cost 8. Three boundaries from Sarah in the twelfth underlined the batters’ dominance as the two vied to be the first to reach a half-century; in the event it was Sarah, who brought up her fifty with a cut through point off her 37th ball of the day.
With the Netherlands visibly rattled, Kathryn followed suit two overs later, reaching her third T20I fifty with a cut through backward point, and although Sarah (65) finally fell in the seventeenth, caught at mid-on by Denise van Deventer, their partnership of 119 had put Scotland well in command. The hosts finished on 167 for 4 – one run short of their record in T20 internationals – with Kathryn left unbeaten on 73, joining her sister in setting their best-ever T20I score.
Facing a required run rate of more than eight, the Netherlands were rocked by the loss of opener Denise van Deventer (1) in the third over of their reply, and when key batter Sterre Kalis (6) followed to Katherine Fraser’s first ball and Heather Siegers (0) to her second, the batting side had been reduced to 9 for 3 in the sixth. Miranda Veringmeier survived the hat-trick ball, but the game was as good as gone. The big-hitting batter stuck to her task, clearing the cow corner rope in the eleventh for the first six of the match, but her departure for 45, immediately followed by that of Robine Rijke (19), stumped by Sarah Bryce off the bowling of Rachel Hawkins (2 for 16), left the Dutch 79 for 6. Iris Zwilling (6) was run out before Sarah Bryce claimed her fifth stumping of the day to remove Juliet Post (1), while Abtaha Maqsood picked up her third wicket three balls later as Fraser safely pouched a catch from Silver Siegers (2). Scotland’s dominance was underlined in the final over with the dismissal of Caroline de Lange (0), bowled by Priyanaz Chatterji, to complete their 69-run victory.
