Ireland captain Gaby Lewis. Photo: Sportsfile
Gaby Lewis continued her run of form in Kathmandu on Monday with a steady 33 as Ireland completed a regulation eight-wicket victory over Namibia to ease into the Super Six stage of the T20 World Cup qualifiers.
After Jane Maguire and Lara McBride had taken three wickets each to restrict the also-rans of Group A to 107-8, skipper Lewis made sure of a third Group A win for her team that saw them finish runners-up to Bangladesh, with the USA third.
Ironically, with a pair of 42s to her name against Papua New Guinea and the US, Lewis’s top score of 73 came in her side’s one defeat when the Girls in Green failed by 10 runs to beat group winners Bangladesh.
Orla Prendergast, who took a stunning catch at deep mid-wicket and top scored with 39, was the player of the match against Namibia and Ireland will be looking for more runs from their big two in the week ahead.
One Super Six win against Scotland, the Netherlands, or Thailand should be enough to secure a top-four place and, with it, qualification for the main event, but all three matches are potential banana skins.
Meanwhile, in Dubai, Grant Stewart hit three successive sixes in the last over to secure a stunning victory for Italy over Ireland in the dead rubber of their three-match T20 international series.
Skipper Paul Stirling top scored for the Boys in Green with 45 from 38 balls in a total of 154 and a couple of wickets each for Matthew Humphreys and Mark Adair looked to have swung the game firmly in Ireland’s favour.
But with 20 required from the final seven deliveries, the Azzurri seventh-wicket pair found a four and then three maximums to win with three balls to spare.
While Italy coach Kevin O’Brien will have enjoyed a famous win, it’s a safe bet to assume Barry McCarthy won’t be entrusted with the final over again when Ireland’s T20 World Cup campaign begins against Sri Lanka in Colombo on February 8.