England v Ireland
Under-19 World Cup, Potchefstroom
Source: ICC
Grace Scrivens (Photo: ICC)
It was great to have a local derby at last. There were anthems, flags, dancing spectators of all ages, but a degree of unfamiliarity. These two sides rarely meet.
Grace Scrivens showed the makings of an ideal captain: she won the toss for the fourth time running. Even better, she set a new individual record score of 93 for the tournament, cementing her prolific opening partnership with Libby Heap (42 off 29). Their 136 together was yet another new record.
Scrivens might remind local experts of the great Springbok opening batman and captain, Graeme Smith. Like him, she is a tall commanding left-hander whose bat looks like a spring-loaded brick wall.
Heap takes the game to the opposition. There’s an element of risk in her approach, but that’s the name of the T20 game. A varied Irish attack couldn’t stitch enough searching deliveries together to hold the pair in check. The power of the English hitting stands out as something special in this age-group.
The fifty came up inside the 6-over powerplay. Scrivens reached her 50 with a six. By the half-way stage the hundred was already gleaming on the board. The England pair maintained their 10 runs per over to see the 150 up inside 15 overs.
The first error came as Heap stepped away to deal with a short ball that kept low. She was bowled, a repeat of a previous mishap.
Unhappily for the Irish, Niamh Holland proved just as aggressive (34*/21). And when Scrivens fell seven short of a deserved century (a left-handed repeat of Heap’s dismissal), Seren Smale came in to add to the slaughter (30*/14).
Ireland huddle (Photo: ICC)
The Reply
It was a shame for Lizzie Scott that she couldn’t seize her chance as she opened the attack. But she is another 16-year-old with plenty of time to build on her bowling skills.
Competition for places in the squad is extreme. Wherever you look, you can’t be sure how the selectors will eventually perm their top XI. Seamers, spinners, keepers, batters, fielders: all are striving to catch the eye and doing so. But Scott’s two overs went wicketless for 18 runs.
The Irish openers, Rebecca Gough and Joanna Loughran, both fell early to careless (or nervous?) run-outs. When the dangerous Hannah Baker came on, she took a wicket straight away. Her analysis, 2.5-0-9-3, was remarkable.
The Girls in Green are a very young side containing several 16-year-olds. The selectors are wisely looking long-term at building this age-group squad; plenty of them will be eligible for the next showing. For now, they found the bowling, backed up by really keen out-fielding, a degree too hot.
Sophia Smale confirmed her great promise with an analysis of 4-0-11-3. Ryana MacDonald-Gay is one of several players to display all-round skills; today she finished her spell with 2-0-8-1. And the captain has the knack of taking wickets with long-hops; a half-tracker went into the hands of Charis Pavely at mid-wicket to add to her all-rounder’s tale of success.
This was a lovely game to watch, played in a good spirit. The Irish won’t have enjoyed the experience, but it will stand them in good stead for the future.
Scores
England 207-2
Ireland 86 (16.5 overs)
England win by 121 runs
Player of the Match: Grace Scrivens
Teams:
Ireland
Gough, Loughran (w-k), Squires, Dempsey, Craig, Harrison, Woods (captain), Sargent, Maguire, McNulty, Jackson
England
Scrivens (captain), Heap, Holland, Seren Smale (w-k), Perrin, Macdonald-Gay, Pavely, Scott, Groves Sophia Smale, Baker
Coverage
The ICC has ensured the highest standards of TV coverage for these games.
The especial delight today was the quality of the commentary team. It’s very rare to find a trio with such inside kknowledge of both players and the game as Isobel Joyce (Ireland), Lydia Greenway (England) and Mignon du Preez, distinguished former captain of South Africa. If Charles Dagnall could manage to limit the number ot times he mentions Burnley FC, life would be perfect!
