WT20 2018: Top five spells from the group stages
5. Shabnim Ismail, 3/10 v Sri Lanka
Bowling with pace and hostility, the self-proclaimed fastest bowler in the world Shabnim Ismail went a long way towards justifying her crown with a fiery spell against Sri Lanka. Bowling full, fast, and finding just enough swing, Sri Lanka's batters couldn't get anywhere near her, as she splattered the stumps three times.
SL v SA: Shabnim Ismail – Player of the Match
Sri Lanka struggled up to just 99/8, and Ismail had done her bit to ensure the Proteas would get off to a winning start.
4. Lucy O’Reilly, 3/19 v Pakistan
In a tournament where they lost all their games, Lucy O’Reilly was one of the most vivid bright spots for Ireland. ICC commentator Alan Wilkins rated O’Reilly as having “the best bowling action in women’s cricket”, and it was her who brought them closer to claiming victory than in any other match. Against Pakistan she was nigh-on exemplary, bowling a maiden first up and conceding just two in her second, both bowled in the Powerplay.
PAK v IRE: Lucy O'Reilly's 3/19
She bowled the last over too, conceding just four runs and claiming all three of her wickets, keeping Pakistan within reach. Her figures were spoilt by three blows from Javeria Khan’s bat, and her 74* would prove the difference between the two sides, but even given that, O’Reilly gave her side a fighting chance.
3. Stafanie Taylor, 4/12 v SA
Chasing a meagre 108 to win, and almost certainly book their place in the World T20 semi-finals, South Africa were 48/1 and cruising. Deandra Dottin created an opening, dismissing Lizelle Lee and running out captain Dane van Niekerk, and Windies skipper Stafanie Taylor burst through it, scything through the Proteas middle order.
WI v SA: Stafanie Taylor stars with career-best 4/12
She claimed a wicket in each over before completing the final run out to win the game, as South Africa collapsed unbelievably to 78 all out. Key was her consistency. She didn’t conceded a single boundary, and when the South Africans came after her, inevitably they perished.
2. Nat Sciver, 3/4 v SA
Nat Sciver wasn’t expecting to bowl much at this tournament. With Katherine Brunt and Anya Shrubsole set to take the new ball, and spin holding sway elsewhere, she might have thought that her role would be to bowl an over or two here or there, to give someone a rest or attempt break a partnership.
ENG v SA: Player of the Match – Nat Sciver
Then Brunt was forced to pull out of the tournament through injury, and all of a sudden Sciver was thrust into bowling the first over, forming half of a two-pronged seam attack. Against South Africa, in a must-win game, she showed she was more than up to the task, claiming the joint-most economical figures in World T20 history, bowling 20 dot balls and taking three key wickets to boot.
The hard-hitting Lizelle Lee and Chloe Tryon, and wicketkeeper Faye Tunnicliffe all fell prey to her brisk medium-pace, and though Anya Shrubsole’s hat-trick stole the headlines, Sciver had done more than anyone else in ensuring England qualified for the semi-finals.
1. Deandra Dottin, 5/5 v Bangladesh
Bangladesh seamer Jahanare Alam initially looked to have staked a claim for inclusion on this list with superb figures of 3/23 which kept the Windies to 106/8, and briefly threatened one of the biggest upsets in World T20 history.
WI v BAN: Deandra Dottin's brilliant five-wicket haul
But that was before firestarter Deandra Dottin, bowling with pace, swing, and control, ripped the heart out of the Bangladesh reply, ensuring there would be no shock. Attacking the stumps – four of her victims were bowled – she finished with the best figures in World T20 history and helped bowl out Bangladesh for 46 – the lowest-ever World T20 total.
