Scotland beaten by Bangladesh in World Cup opener

Women's T20 World Cup, Sharjah

Bangladesh 119-7 (20 overs): Mostary 36 (38); Horley 3-13

Scotland 103-7 (20 overs): Bryce 49* (52); Ritu 2-15

Bangladesh won by 16 runs

Scorecard

Scotland suffered a 16-run defeat by Bangladesh in their first ever outing at a Women's T20 World Cup.

Set 120 to win on a slow pitch and in humid conditions in Sharjah, Scotland were stifled by Bangladesh's variety of spin options and could only manage 103-7.

Opener Sarah Bryce kept her side in the game with 49 not out but struggled for support as the middle order stuttered under the pressure of a chase.

There were also some early nerves from Scotland in the field, with three chances dropped amid a promising bowling effort to restrict Bangladesh to 119-7.

Sobhana Mostary top-scored with 36 for Bangladesh as they chose to bat first in unknown conditions, considering the infrequency of women's cricket played in the United Arab Emirates.

Boundaries proved difficult to come by, particularly against spin, with all-rounder Saskia Horley taking three late wickets to keep the total to less than a run a ball.

The conditions suited Bangladesh, who expertly applied pressure on Bryce and her sister and captain Kathryn as Scotland's most experienced players, with the latter falling to seamer Marufa Akter for 11.

Scotland failed to recover after the skipper's departure at the end of the six-over powerplay, with Ailsa Lister the only other batter to reach double figures with only five boundaries managed in the entirety of their innings.

It is Bangladesh's first T20 World Cup win since 2014, and their first ever away from home, and they next face England on Saturday, with Scotland up against West Indies the following day.

Bangladesh master conditions

The pitches in the United Arab Emirates are unfamiliar for women's cricket, with only seven women's matches played at Sharjah previously and none at all in Dubai.

The expectation was that slow surfaces would suit spinners in the day games and that would aid teams like Bangladesh, who boast an array of slow bowling options.

Their total of 119 felt fractionally below par as Mostary and opener Shathi Rani, who made 29, relied on running well between the wickets rather than flurries of boundaries as Scotland's bowlers were impressively disciplined.

The dropped catches did not ultimately cost Scotland too many runs: opener Murshida Khatun was dropped on 12 but fell two balls later for the same score, and captain Nigar Sultana Joty was spilled on seven and 17, but only managed 18 before she departed.

However, they were indicative of some understandable nerves in their first outing at a global tournament as Bangladesh showed their experience, with skipper Joty confident of defending the total because of the trust in her spinners.

Fahima Khatun finished with 1-21, Nahida Akter was impressively economical with 1-19 and medium pacer Ritu Moni was named player of the match for her 2-15.

They have set a template for how they are most likely to attack other teams in the tournament, and with conditions in their favour, are capable of causing a few upsets along the way now that they have broken a decade-long losing streak.

Bryce sisters star despite defeat

The Bryce sisters, who play their domestic cricket for The Blaze in England and have regularly featured in The Hundred, played such a significant role in Scotland's qualification run to the World Cup and it was fitting for both to make big contributions in their opener despite the eventual defeat.

Older sister Kathryn took her country's first wicket, with Murshida caught by Katherine Fraser for 12, and added a catch to her tidy spell of 1-23.

She was undone by a ball that kept very low from Marufa and could then only watch as Sarah attempted to drag Scotland back into contention.

It was a brutally tough day for the wicketkeeper, who was on the field for every ball of the match in extremely hot temperatures, which may be something the Scottish management have to consider going forward.

She is one of the fittest cricketers on the domestic circuit, but was still visibly exhausted and struggling to run twos towards the end of her knock.

But it was a gritty innings that gave Scotland hope even with the run-rate climbing, such is her class, but the inexperienced middle order wilted around her.

Lister and Darcey Carter holed out off Ritu for 11 and two, Priyanaz Chatterji was brilliantly run out by the athletic Marufa for five before Lorna Jack-Brown, Abtaha Maqsood and Fraser were all dismissed by trying to find much-needed boundaries at the end of the innings.

There were signs of promise from Scotland in all aspects of the game, but support with the bat is going to be crucial if they are to progress further.

'We didn't know what to do with the nerves' - reaction

Player of the match, Bangladesh's Ritu Moni: "It was a slow wicket here today, and I just tried to play to my strength. I tried to bowl with some pace variations and thankfully, it worked for us.

"We have been working really hard for the past one year and we were really prepared going into this match. This is a very proud moment not just for me, but for the whole team."

Scotland captain Kathryn Bryce: "Obviously, it was the first game and there were some nerves going into it. We have played some brilliant cricket over the last few months and I hope it will come out in the next games in this tournament.

"There was plenty of buzz around the dressing room going into this game and we did not know what to do with those nerves."