Stats: Nepal's Anjali Chand records the best ever T20I figures during 2019 South Asian Games

Cricket in 2019 South Asian games started off in style as a World record was created in the bowling department in the very first match of Women’s tournament. Four teams are fighting it out for the Gold medal in Women’s cricket for this South Asian games while five sides in the Men’s cricket. Hosts Nepal Women faced off Maldives Women on the first day of the tournament.

The team from the Maldives stood no match to the Nepal team as they were bundled out for just 16 runs. Nepal Women won the game by 10 wickets as they chased down the target of 17 runs in only 5 legitimate deliveries. Kajal Shrestha scored 13 runs while another four runs came via extra. This victory with 115 balls to spare is now the 2nd biggest win in all Twenty20 Internationals in terms of balls remaining.

Anjali Chand, one of the two T20I debutants for Nepal in this game, was brought in as 3rd change bowler in the 7th over. The Maldives were struggling at 15/4 after the mandatory powerplay. Anjali’s first over left the opponents in deep tatters. They were down to 15/7 by end of the 7th over as she took wickets off alternative deliveries. The left-arm spinner took two more wickets at the end of her 2nd over to leave Maldives Women reeling at 16/9.

She had completed a 5-fer in two overs and was yet to concede a run. Anjali Chand took another wicket on the first ball of her 3rd over to complete a hat-trick and also finished the Maldives Women’s innings at 16 runs only. She finished with figures of 2.1-2-0-6 and recorded not only the best bowling figures in Women’s T20Is but also in the T20Is across Men’s and Women’s cricket. The previous best bowling figures were 6/3 by Mas Elysa of Malaysia Women against China Women in January this year.

Deepak Chahar recorded the best figures in Men’s T20Is last month as he took 6/7 against Bangladesh. His figures now stand at No.3 in the list of best bowling figures in T20Is across both Men’s and Women’s cricket. The more impressive fact about Anjali’s effort is that this came on her T20I debut. She thus became only the 2nd player to take a 6-fer on T20I debut. Botswana Women’s Botsogo Mpedi claimed figures of 6/3 on her T20I debut against Lesotho Women last year.

Best bowling figures in Twenty20 Internationals: (Men / Women)

(Stats as on December 2, 2019)