Aye, aye captain! Fatima Sana leads Pakistan to a winning start

Captain Fatima Sana led from the front as Pakistan kicked off its Women’s T20 World Cup journey with a surprising win over Asian champions Sri Lanka on Thursday at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Pakistan, who have never made it out of the group stages in eight previous attempts, beat Sri Lanka by 31 runs. The Girls in Green made 116 in their 20 overs before restricting Sri Lanka to 85-9.

Fatima Sana’s brilliance

In her first world cup match as captain, Sana achieved the feat of becoming the youngest captain, after Australia’s meg Lanning to win a match in ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.

Fatima Sana after winning Player of the Match award against Sri Lanka ICC

Sana, who shone brightly with both bat and ball, was Player of the Match. Batting at no. 7, the 22-year-old was the top scorer with 30 runs off just 20 balls. The skipper also bagged two wickets.

“This victory is dedicated to everyone who believed in us,” Sana wrote on X after the game.

“What a momentous win to kick off our World Cup campaign! Well done to my incredible team, especially the bowling unit led by Omaima Sohail’s crucial spell, for stepping up and defending a challenging total.”

Surprising win for Pakistan

Pakistan staged a determined fightback to beat Sri Lanka with left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal claiming three wickets. Nashra Sandhu, Omaima Sohail and Fatima Sana all took two each for Pakistan against Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka.

Pakistan needed a crucial lower-order knock from their captain Sana to post a competitive total, having slumped to 84-8 after winning the toss and choosing to bat. "We won the toss and we wanted a lot of runs but we didn't get. We still achieved the target in the game," said Sana.

For Sri Lanka, Nilakshika Silva top-scored with 22 after Pakistan had lost opening bowler Diana Baig to a calf strain after just one ball.

Diana Baig walks off injured during the match against Sri Lanka ICC

Bangladesh’s dream world cup opener

Meanwhile, Bangladesh ended a 10-year wait to win a Women's T20 World Cup match in the opener on Thursday. They secured a 16-run win over Scotland after posting what appeared to be a flimsy 119-7 in their 20 overs. The Bangladesh bowling attack, however, tied the Scots down and restricted them to 103-7.

Captain Nigar Sultana Joty described ending her team's long wait for a World Cup win as "very emotional" and suggested it would create "momentum" for the women's game at home.

"I would say that a win after 10 years, we all are very emotional because we have been waiting for this victory for a long time," said Joty who was playing in her 100th T20I. "No matter how good the cricket we play, if it doesn't translate into victory, it means nothing. And I would say for women's cricket, after a long time, I feel like we have done something.

"We have always said about Bangladesh that we have to create momentum and then we will move forward with that momentum.

"Now it seems like we are going to dream of doing something bigger. Similarly, the fans and family who support us in Bangladesh are dreaming that we can do something better than that."

The momentum for women's cricket in Bangladesh would have had a far bigger boost had they been staging the event as planned.

Instead, weeks of widespread political unrest in Bangladesh, which eventually led to the installation of an interim government, saw the tournament switched to the United Arab Emirates, with Bangladesh remaining as nominal hosts.

ICC

"Initially it was very heartbreaking because we always bear in mind that we are going to play in front of our home crowd," said Joty. "But still, the people who came here today, it was brilliant."

After winning the toss and batting first, Sobhana Mostary top-scored with 36 for Bangladesh. Their bowlers then strangled newcomers Scotland in spite of Sarah Bryce's 49 not out from 52 balls.

Ritu Moni was named player of the match for her spell of 2-15 from four overs.