Ireland Women rattle Scotland by 61 runs in the 2nd T20 to square the series

BELFAST – Gaby Lewis's quick fire 47 and Leah Paul's four-wicket haul guided Ireland Women to square the T20 series against Scotland at Stormont on Tuesday.

Ireland skipper Laura Delany won the toss and elected to bat first. Opener Rebecca Stokell slammed the first ball over mid-wicket for four, signalling her team's intent early, however both she and skipper Delany were dismissed in quick succession.

Gaby Lewis and Shauna Kavanagh stabilized the innings that shifted the momentum on their side. Lewis timed the ball brilliantly, smashing six boundaries on her way to 47 off 39 balls in a match winning performance, whereas Kavanagh (31) found the gaps consistently and ran hard to keep the fielders under pressure throughout.

Having claimed the wickets of Lewis and Kavanagh within the space of an over, the Scots were almost back in the game. However, Orla Prendergast (24*) and Lara Maritz (16*) added 43 runs from the final 42 balls to complete the host side’s innings at 137-4 from their 20 overs.

From the visiting team, only two Scottish batters made double figures as the Irish side kept the proceedings under control by bowling tight lines, holding every catch and staying exceptionally sharp in the field.

Left-arm spinner Leah Paul bowled with control and flight to claim  4-16 , which is the second finest bowling performance in T20Is for Ireland Women (4-15 from Ciara Metcalfe in 2016 is the best till date). The other Irish bowlers too played their part in an all-round team performance. Prendergast sealed the game, yorking Samantha Haggo as Scotland were all out for 76 in 16.4 overs.

MATCH SUMMARY

Ireland Women v Scotland Women, 2nd Match, Belfast, 25 May 2021

Ireland 137-4 (20 overs; G Lewis 47, S Kavanagh 31; K McGill 2-26)

Scotland 76 (16.4 overs; K McGill 19;  Paul 4-16, L Delany 2-11)

Ireland Women won by 61 runs

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