KOWLOON, Hong Kong, CMC – Retired West Indies all-rounder Deandra Dottin struck a half-century and grabbed two wickets in a Player-of-the-Match performance, as she propelled Barmy Army to a 17-run victory over Hayley Matthews’s Warriors in the Fairbreak Invitational here yesterday.
Sent in at the Kowloon Cricket Club, Barmy Army stormed to 163 for six from their 20 overs, Dottin top-scoring with 69 from 48 deliveries and Rumana Ahmed getting 37 from 28 balls.
In reply, Warriors were dismissed for 146 off 20 overs with Dottin snatching two for nine from three outstanding overs of medium pace and 24-year-old United States left-arm pacer Tara Norris claiming two for 39.
Barmy Army lie second on 10 points while Warriors remained top of the six-team pile on 15 points, after suffering their first defeat.
Barmy Army were struggling on 26 for two at the end of the fifth over before Dottin pulled them out of trouble, punching three fours and seven sixes to inspire a 99-run, third wicket stand with Rumana who counted half-dozen fours in a 28-ball knock. The right-handed Dottin was eventually third out in the 16th over, triggering a slide which saw four wickets go down for 37 runs, Scottish seamer Kathryn Bryce finishing with two for 29.
Dottin’s former West Indies teammate, fast bowler Shamilia Connell, produced a superb four-over spell which yielded only eight runs and a single wicket, while the current West Indies captain Matthews sent down four overs of off-spin which cost 41 runs and served up one wicket.
Chasing a tricky target, Warriors were quickly in a slump at 22 for two in the third over before Matthews lashed three sixes in an 18-ball 28, as she put on 29 for the third wicket with Yasmeen Khan (21).
Matthews perished in the seventh over, lbw to Dottin, leading to a collapse which saw Warriors labouring at 79 for six in the 11th over.
Bryce intervened, slamming 45 from 26 balls with four fours and two sixes, and inspiring a 38-run, seventh wicket partnership with captain Sindhu Sriharsha (14) and a 22-run eighth wicket stand with Mariana Martinez (seven not out).
However, the last three wickets tumbled for seven runs with Dottin picking up a second scalp, that of her former teammate Connell (0).