India trump Pakistan by 9 wickets in Women's U19 T20 Asia Cup opener

India defeated Pakistan by nine wickets in the first Group A match of the Asian Cricket Council's (ACC) Women’s U19 T20 Asia Cup at the Bayuemas Cricket Oval on Sunday.

The Zoofishan Ayyaz-led national side opted to bat first after winning the toss and posted just 67 runs on the scoreboard with a loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. 

Wicketkeeper-batter Komal Khan was the top scorer with a 32-ball 24, hitting four boundaries.

Meanwhile, the young Women in Green managed to bag only one wicket, taken by Fatima Khan, in the second innings. 

For India, Sonam Yadav bagged four wickets for six runs in four overs, helping her side to dominate the Green Shirts and restrict them to the meagre total. 

While batting, India chased down the target handed by Pakistan in just 7.5 overs, at the loss of only one wicket. 

Left-hand batter G Kamilini top-scored an unbeaten 44 off 29 balls for the side, with the help of four fours and three sixes, while Sanika Chalke scored 19 runs.

After a disappointing loss, Pakistan are now set to take on Nepal on Monday in their second fixture of the tournament. The match will begin at 2pm local time.

Besides Women in Green, India and Nepal are placed in Group A, while Group B features Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.

The six-team tournament will be played in a T20 format, with the top two sides from each group progressing to the Super-Four stage.

The Super-Four stage matches will be played on December 19 and 20, while the final is scheduled for December 22.

According to the tournament’s format, additional matches for fifth and sixth positions, as well as third and fourth positions, will be played on December 18 and 22, respectively.