The North Zone Academy women’s team fell to a 44-run defeat to Victoria Cricket Club in their opening match of the Trinidad and Tobago Women’s Cricket Association (TTWCA) T20 tournament on Sunday, 23 February, in Barrackpore.
Aishani Ramsewak took two wickets for the North Zone team to restrict Victoria CC to 54 for 4 inside 10 overs.
However, a rash of no-balls and wides saw Victoria recover to post 132 for 5 in their allotment of 17 overs.
North Zone women also started well with the bat, getting to 62 for 2 with Onika Adams Hillaire and Sarah Sahadath striking seven fours between them.
However, the run out of Jessica Davis signaled a damaging collapse during which North lost their final eight wickets for 26 runs to lose by 44 runs.
The North Zone women’s team will resume their quest for a place in the TTWCA T20 semifinals on 10 February after the break for the annual Carnival celebration.
The North Zone women’s team made its debut earlier this season in the TTWCA League competition and their coach Cynthia Joseph felt they showed improvement in their first-ever competitive T20 match.
“I think they adapted very well. They showed growth from the 30-overs. They showed great improvement and they have adapted very well,” she told northzonecricket.com.
Ramsewak, who opened the bowling with Davis, struck with her fifth ball getting Abigail Boodoo (0) caught by her opening bowling partner.
The Lakshmi Girls Hindu College student then ran out Amala Durgadeen (10) before her sister Tejal struck to remove Abna Mohammed for 4.
Aishani then got rid of opener Rose Ramsingh for 14 to reduce the home team to 54 for 4 in 9.1 overs.
However, Victoria would fight back with a partnership of 68 for the fifth wicket between Queen Mohammed and Chelsey Sookhram, aided and abetted by a rising extras count.
“After the 12th over, I believe that’s when we had a lot of no-balls, and a couple of misfields and overthrows. That’s when the game sort of ran away from us,” said Joseph.
“It’s a lack of focus. Fitness could also play a part. Also, since they were new to this faster format of the game, they needed to adapt themselves. I think that is why the game ran away from us.”
Mohammed went for 34 off the bowling of Sarah Panchu as Victoria closed on 132 for 5 in their 17 overs.
Sookhram ended on 23 not out, with Aishani Ramsewak taking 2 for 24 in her for overs.
North totaled 41 extras with 28 wides and 11 no-balls.
Needing to score at 7.82 per over to win the match, North promoted Hillaire to open alongside the more experienced Sahadath.
“There was a bit of improvement with her (Hillaire). Also, I needed somebody who can strike the ball to set a good start for us so that the others could continue along those lines. It worked out very well until there was a collapse in the middle,” said Joseph.
Hillaire struck four boundaries in getting to 22, as North rolled to 32 at the end of for overs.
However, the opener was bowled first ball of the fifth over by Boodoo with new batter Aishani Ramsewak falling three overs later, LBW to Durgadeen for 1.
Sahadath, who struck three fours, continued in a more sedate fashion with skipper Davis, putting on 25 for the third wicket with her team falling behind the required run-rate.
However, disaster struck when Davis was run out by Durgadeen for 12 as wickets started to tumble.
Charlotte Mack (7) and Sahadath (25) fell in the 14th over bowled by Shanta Roopchand with North falling to 78 for 5.
A precipitous decline followed with the last five batters all falling within the space of nine balls for the addition of only four runs.
The run out of Tejal Ramsewak (1) was the beginning of the end with Niaomi Ali (1) bowled by Roopchan in the next over, and Angel Jada Bishop (2) going via another run out.
Rose Ramsingh would trap Seraiah Kawalsingh (5) LBW to the first ball of the 17th over, before Latisha Samuel was run out off the next ball to confirm the win for Victoria CC.
North Zone Academy women were 44 runs short with four balls still unused.
The women’s team returns to action on 10 February in the TTWCA T20 tournament.
Summarized scores: Victoria Cricket Club 132 for 5 in 17 overs (Queen Mohammed 34, Chelsey Sookhram 23*; Aishani Ramsewak 2/24, Tejal Ramsewak 1/18, Sarah Panchu 1/19) vs. North Zone 88 all out in 16.2 overs (Sarah Sahadath 25, Onika Adams Hillaire 22, Jessica Davis 12; Shanta Roopchan 3/24, Rose Ramsingh 1/7, Abigail Boodoo 1/18). Victoria won by 44 runs.
North: Onika Adams Hillaire, Sarah Sahadath, Aishani Ramsewak, Jessica Davis, Charlotte Mack, Seraiah Kawalsingh, Tejal Ramsewak, Naomi Ali, Angel Jada Bishop, Latisha Samuel, Sarah Panchu
