Nahida’s captaincy debut ends in Pakistan thrashing

A new captain but the same old story against Pakistan. Bangladesh women suffered an eight-wicket defeat in their opening match of the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy on Thursday, handing Nahida Akter a disappointing start to her captaincy after taking over from Nigar Sultana Joty.

The defeat was another setback against familiar rivals, coming just 50 days after Bangladesh, under Joty’s leadership, lost to Pakistan by 31 runs in the third-place play-off at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.

In the Group B encounter in Ajman, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan chased down Bangladesh’s modest target of 109 with 25 balls to spare.

Once again, Bangladesh’s batting failure proved costly. Despite opting to bat first after winning the toss, they managed just 108-9 in their allotted 20 overs.

Former captain Joty top-scored with 27 off 20 balls, hitting two fours and a six, while Shorna Akter contributed 21 off 20 deliveries.

Pakistan’s spinners played a key role in restricting Tigresses, with leg-spinner Tuba Hassan claiming three wickets for 26 runs. Left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu chipped in with two wickets for just 13 runs.

Bangladesh’s bowlers, meanwhile, failed to put Pakistan under any meaningful pressure during the chase.

Opener Sadaf Shamas scored 37 off 37 balls to lay the foundation for the victory, while captain Muneeba Ali remained unbeaten on 31 off 34 deliveries to guide Pakistan home.

For Bangladesh, Sobhana and Sobhana picked up one wicket apiece, conceding four and 15 runs respectively.

Nahida’s side will look to bounce back when they take on Zimbabwe in their next group-stage match on 13 November.