Women's Twenty20 Asia Cup: Mithali Raj smashes unbeaten 97 before India bowlers fold Malaysia for 27 to win by 142 runs

Kuala Lumpur: As many as six Malaysia batsmen fell for duck as India bundled them out for just 27 to register a resounding 142-run victory in their opening Women’s Twenty20 Asia Cup match. Electing to bat, India scored 169 for 3 in their allotted 20 overs, riding on senior player Mithali Raj’s unbeaten 97 off 69 balls, and then shot the home side out in just 13.4 overs in a completely lop-sided match at Kinrara Academy Oval in Kuala Lumpur. [caption id=“attachment_4493853” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Not a single Malaysia batsman managed to make a score in double-figures. Image courtesy: Asian Cricket Council Facebook page[/caption] Pooja Vastrakar grabbed three wickets for just six runs with her medium pace while the spin duo of Anuja Patil and Poonam Yadav, who did not concede any run, took to wickets apiece as the Indian bowlers ran riot over the clueless Malaysians. Only five Malaysian batsmen opened their account and none could manage to make a score in double-figures. Sasha Azmi top-scored with nine runs from 10 balls. Malaysia lost half of their side within five overs, reducing to 12 for 5. Captain Winifred Duraisingam (5 off 21 balls) and Zumika Azmi (4 off 15 balls) stayed at the crease for long with any substantial contribution as India completed a massive victory. Earlier, India did not have the best of starts as they were 35 for 2 just after the Powerplay overs. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur then gave the impetus to the Indian innings with her 23-ball 32. But the day belonged to senior player Mithali, who batted through the 20 overs with a strike rate of 140.57. She hit 13 fours and a six in her 69-ball unbeaten knock. She, however, could not find the boundary in the last two overs when she was eight away from a century. Mithali’s 86-run stand with Harmanpreet came off just 53 balls and she closed the innings off with Deepti Sharma (18 not out). Brief Scores: India Women: 169 for 3 in 20 overs (Mithali Raj 97 not out, Harmanpreet Kaur 32). Malaysia Women: 27 all out in 13.4 overs (Sasha Azmi 9; Pooja Vastrakar 3/6, Poonam Yadav 2/0).