Ireland Women vs Scotland Women Match 2 Full Commentary

The Scotland Women make their way back out onto the field. 162 on paper looks a very comfortable target but the conditions have not changed much. The new ball did talk in the first innings, so if Scotland can do some damage in the Powerplay, you never know. The opening pair of Alana Dalzell and Amy Hunter strides out to the middle to open for Ireland. It will be the Scottish skipper, Kathryn Bryce, to start off. Hunter to face. Backward square leg and mid-wicket are the two positions with boundary riders. A lot of free space in front of the wicket on the leg side. No slip in place, crucially. Here we go then!

... THE RUN CHASE ...

Heavy roller on the pitch - Will that make batting easier? Natalie Germanos is pitchside. She notes that the surface has a nice covering of grass and feels it has not changed a great deal after 20 overs of cricket. She adds that the windy conditions have been difficult for the fielders to contend with. At times, the Irish fielders were caught out of position because of the wind, and that is something the Scottish fielders will have to take into account.

Tricky conditions for batting - One of the stars of the partnership, Sarah Bryce, is up for a candid chat with the on-air commentators. Sarah says the conditions were pretty tricky for batting. On batting alongside her sister Kathryn, she says that they know each other's games really well, which makes it enjoyable to build a partnership together. She is pleased with the total they have posted but admits that they will need to bowl and field well to defend the total.

Saved by the sisters - 60 by skipper Kathryn Bryce. 49 by her sister, Sarah. Nothing much either side of the two. Scotland Women will be massively disappointed by this final effort, as around the 14th over mark, they had a wonderful platform laid down by the Bryce sisters. Their 106-run stand for the third wicket put pressure on Ireland, but what it has ended up being is, just give some respect to the final total. Most of the batters could not adjust to the wind or the ball movement.

Started well, finished well - That's been the story of this bowling attack. Ireland Women made really good use of the conditions with the new ball, getting it to swing and also varying the pace. As a result, the Powerplay went for just 37 runs and also yielded 2 wickets. And as mentioned before, excellent death bowling curtailed the scoring again. It was actually the middle overs - 96/0 in 9 overs - which hurt Ireland Women. They would do well to admit that their bowling and fielding could have been much better which could have got the score down even further. Ava Canning was the star, with three wickets, including a double-wicket 19th over, while Arlene Kelly did well to hold things up. The others were okay, but more or less inconsistent.

Excellent death bowling - Just 28/3 in the last 5 overs. From a possible 190 to a 180, the Irish have done really well to keep the Scots to around the 160-mark. The pitch is a good one to bat on and it has been mostly the skill of the bowlers which did not allow the batters to go big.

Onto the final over then. Can Ireland Women keep Scotland Women under 165?

What an over so far. 0 W 0 1 W. Wickets are tumbling here at Old Trafford as Ava is caning the Scots at the death. Priyanaz Chatterji walks in next, at number 7, replacing her skipper, Kathryn Bryce.

Quick wickets for Ireland then. Just what they needed, as 142/2 has now become 154/4. Megan McColl walks in next, at number 6, replacing Ailsa Lister.

Orla Prendergast is back on. 2-0-17-0 so far.

Disappointment for one Team In Green - Under helpful conditions, Ireland Women could not quite make use of those to earn a win. How will the next Team In Green learn from the former's mistakes? It is a big clash coming up as the finalists of the last three editions of the Women's World Cup (2023 T20, 2024 T20 and 2025 ODI) - South Africa Women - take on the 12-time champions in Women's World Cups (T20Is and ODIs) - Australia Women. The first ball is scheduled to be bowled at 1.30 pm GMT, but our buildup has already begun. Do hop over to that matchcentre for all the action. ADIOS! TAKE CARE!

We left a few runs out there - That's the honest admission of the victorious skipper of Scotland Women, KATHRYN BRYCE, who now comes up for her second interview. On being asked about what flipped the game for them, Bryce says that the temperature favoured the Scots and that is the reason they played their suitable cricket. On top of that, she adds that they have had some great results before coming to the World Cup stage, and she reckons that gave them the morale boost. The next question is about defending a score at Old Trafford, so, how did they manage? To this question, Bryce replies that their bowling unit did exactly what they needed to do and their fielding department was upto the mark as well. On the upcoming games, she says that there are some big matches coming up for them, and they will have to get ready.

Hard to pinpoint any one stage - The captain of Ireland Women, GABY LEWIS, manages a brave smile. Sportingly says that Scotland Women played better cricket. Asked first about her team's bowling, Lewis admits that they let things slip in the middle period. Adds that Ireland Women got a good start in the Powerplay but it slipped away in the middle stage. Credits Scotland for playing really well. On the reason for the chase faltering, Gaby does not want to pinpoint any one particular stage. Details that her side finished very well with the ball and the momentum was with the Irish. But maybe, she feels that if her batters had got a good start in the Powerplay, then the team might have done better. But still, she feels it very hard to point at any one stage of the chase for the loss. On the message to the unit after this loss, GL says that it is a long tournament. Adds that the players still believe that they can win games and qualify for the next stage. Calls it as hard luck for this match but stresses that they will keep their heads high and try to bounce back.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - KATHRYN BRYCE. No surprises. She led from the front and steered her team's ship to calmer waters. Bowled a frugal spell with the ball too. Bryce starts off sharing her emotion after getting their first-ever win in this big World Cup stage. She says that she is feeling outstanding and also thanks the crowd for travelling all the way to support them. On being asked about her partnership with sister Sarah, she reckons that their running between the wickets was very good, as the outfield was slow and it helped them keep the scoreboard ticking. On her personal strokeplay, she says that she is pleased that everything worked well in this match and she also hopes that they will deliver this kind of performance in the upcoming matches as well. She ends up giving a message to the fans and thanks them for their support throughout the match.

Lucky toss to lose? Seems like it. Before this match, Old Trafford had a 100 percent success record for chasing teams in Women's T20s. And with the conditions being overcast, Ireland Women's decision to bowl first seemed to stretch that record even further. But some sloppy fielding and courageous batting in the middle overs took the momentum away from Ireland. They did restrict Scotland to 161 but that could have easily been around 130-140. And in the run chase, the pitch slowed up a touch with spin playing a major role. The Bryce sisters were the one who steered the momentum towards their side. For Ireland Women, Ava Canning did well with her 3 wickets, which also included a double-wicket 19th over in a stunning death-over bowling display.

Tentative footwork - Unfortunate case it was, for Ireland Women. They were never quite comfortable against spin, struggling to read the ball from the hand. Amy Hunter was excellent against the new ball but only Orla Prendergast showed decent footwork against spin. The rest of the batters just caved in, with only three batters reaching double digits in the top 7.

Immaculate spin - Scotland Women read the surface beautifully. Only 1 wicket went to spin in the first innings. But in the run chase, Katherine Fraser and Kirstie Gordon choked the Irish batters, with combined figures of 8-0-35-6! There was a little bit of hold on the pitch, but it was more about Ireland Women unable to use their feet, which resulted in so many wickets falling to spin. The others were decent too, with the key thing being that the Scots never allowed the Irish to attack much at any stage of the match.

First is always sweet - Definitely. Because the first is something which can never be overwritten. Ever. Scotland Women gain their maiden win in Women's World Cups and it has come over their arch rivals, Ireland Women. The Scots did come into this contest with three wins on the trot over the Irish but to gain that fourth win in succession in a World Cup match is massively inspiring. They get their first points of the World Cup in their first match of their second edition. Congratulations!

Final over of the match. A mere formality for Scotland Women as their first World Cup win is on the cards. Kathryn Bryce will finish things off. 3-0-19-1 so far.

Aimee Maguire is the last batter in, replacing Cara Murray. 2 overs left in this innings.

Onto broken crumbs now. Cara Murray walks in next, at number 10, replacing Arlene Kelly. Playing out all the 20 overs will not change the match result, but it will certainly give Ireland Women some respectability.

Scotland Women's first World Cup win loading? In all likelihood. Ava Canning walks in next, at number 9, replacing Orla Prendergast.