Tigresses off to a winning start in the T20 World Cup

Bangladesh got off to a winning start in the Women's T20 World Cup by defeating Scotland by 16 runs in the tournament opener at Sharjah on Thursday.

Batting first, Bangladesh managed to score 119-7 and in reply, they managed to restrict Scotland to 103-7 in their 20 overs.

Despite the low scores, this was the highest match aggregate in a T20I match involving both teams with 222 runs scored.

Bangladesh pacer Ritu Moni was adjudged the Player of the Match as she took 2-15 in her four overs.

"It was a decent wicket so I just wanted to bowl wicket-to-wicket and use my variations. We have put in a lot of hard work in the last year and we were really prepared. It was a great moment and a very proud moment for my team and me. (On the team's bowling plans) We were trying to assess the conditions and bowl to our strengths," Ritu said in te post-match presentation.

Ritu was ably supported by the other bowlers, Marufa Akter (1-17 in three overs), Nahida Akter (1-19 in four overs), Fahima Khatun (1-21 in four overs), and Rabeya Khan (1-20 in four overs). 

This marked Bangladesh's first win in the T20 World Cup after a drought of 10 years and 16 matches. 

With the team having set their sights on reaching the semifinals of this tournament, this win will boost their confidence and Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana Joty expressed her happiness after the win. 

"We have been waiting for this moment for a long time. We had in our minds that this is our moment. Means a lot. This is the kind of wicket we need to be settled on. It was not very easy to bat on initially. Building a partnership (between Rani and Mostary) was crucial for us. We had a good total and we kept believing in ourselves. We have a very good spin attack, with Marufa also doing well, so we were confident about it (the defence). (On her batting lower than usual) We are trying to do something different. Taj (Nehar) was playing brilliantly in the last two warm-up games, and the idea was for her to build a partnership and hit some boundaries. Unfortunately, she got out. We are trying to get the momentum and we got it. Very happy that we fought back and seeing them (the girls) smile is the biggest inspiration," Joty said in the post match presentation. 

The Tigresses will next face England on 5 October, West Indies on 10 October and South Africa on 12 October in their remaining group stage matches.