Left-arm spinner ends up with career-best figures of 6-26 as Proteas bundled out in 26 overs; Green Shirts win by 6 wickets as Nashra shares her journey with Dawn.com.
Nashra Sandhu-inspired Pakistan made easy work of South Africa with a 6-wicket win in their final one-day international (ODI) in the lead-up to the Women’s World Cup on Monday.
The left-arm spinner ended up with career-best figures of 6-26 as the Proteas were skittled out for 115 within 26 overs at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore — before the Women in Green chased it down with 19 overs to spare.
South Africa rested five key players, including the player-of-the-match from their last encounter — Tazmin Brits — who had scored a mammoth unbeaten 171 in the match on Friday.
Nashra’s journey
Nashra had spoken to Dawn.com ahead of the Green Shirts series against Ireland, where she shared her cricketing journey.
She discussed her struggles as a woman cricketer, the facilities available to girls in cricket today, and the potential for a women’s Pakistan Super League.
Nashra also talked about how she ended up as a left-arm spinner in a country obsessed with fast bowlers.
“I was a fast bowler, but my university coach suggested that you’re a left-armer and aren’t that tall — so you should try spin, and I already used to bowl a bit of spin at home,” Nashra said.
The final ODI before the World Cup
The Green Shirts were bowling first after losing the toss in their third and final ODI of the series, which was won by South Africa 2-1.
Proteas skipper Laura Wolvaardt called the coin toss correctly at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and chose to bat first.
Eyman Fatima made her debut for the Green Shirts, and spin all-rounder Syeda Aroob Shah returned to the side.
Nashra started her six-wicket haul by dismissing Proteas’ Sune Luus, and the South African batters never recovered as the blows continued.
She was adjudicated player-of-the-match for her tremendous performance with the ball on a track which was a typical Lahore wicket.
Nashra became the third — following Nida Dar and Sana Mir — and the fastest among Pakistan bowlers to the 100 ODI wickets milestone — reaching there in just 74 innings.
Skipper Fatima Sana survived an injury scare when she was hit on her shin by a drive by Wolvaardt in her second over. She was taken out of the ground on a stretcher, but returned later in the innings.
South Africa began briskly, reaching 38 without loss in 6.3 overs through skipper Wolvaardt’s 28 off 23 balls, which comprised of six fours.
South Africa’s promising start was disrupted when Laura hit one straight to Muneeba off Diana Baig.
Nashra then ran through the South African batting line-up to take 5-8 in her next six overs as South Africa slumped from 61-3 to 94-8.
All-rounder Syeda Aroob Shah — returning after two years — picked up the last two wickets to wrap up South Africa’s innings as they registered their second-lowest ODI score in the last five years.
Sidra Amin top-scored for the Women in Green again with an unbeaten 50 that anchored the innings after some early jitters — ending her series with two centuries and a 50.
In the second ODI on Friday, the Women in Green were all set to chase South Africa’s daunting 313-run total, but fell 25 runs short.
A spectacular knock by Sidra Amin, who became the first Pakistani batter to score consecutive centuries, brought them close, but in the end, the Duckworth-Lewis method adjusted the 313-run target was a step too far.
Setting a mammoth score to chase after the Proteas batters ruled the roost in the first innings, Sidra stepped up again under the Gaddafi Stadium lights to score a sublime hundred — but failed to close the chase.
The Proteas had sailed to an easy victory over Pakistan after chasing down a target of 256 to win by eight wickets in the first ODI of their series in Lahore on Tuesday.
The ODIs were all staged at the Gaddafi Stadium, with the first ball of all matches bowled at 3:30pm.
Pakistan’s 15-member squad was captained by Fatima, while Laura Wolvaardt lead the visiting side. In the build-up to the series, Pakistan held a two-week pre-series camp in Lahore, which included practice sessions and scenario-based matches.
The squad featured one uncapped player, Eyman Fatima, who recently made her T20I debut against Ireland in Dublin in August.
The series provides both sides with an opportunity to finalise preparations for the eight-team World Cup, set to take place from September 30 to November 2 in India and Sri Lanka. Pakistan will play all their matches in Sri Lanka.
Head-to-head, in 28 ODI matches, South Africa had an upper hand against Pakistan, but the last time both sides met, Pakistan defeated South Africa by eight wickets in the ICC Women’s Championship 2022-25 series fixture at the National Stadium in Karachi on Sept 14, 2023.
Nashra Sandhu bowls in Pakistan’s final one-day international (ODI) against South Africa in Lahore on September 22. — X/PCB
