Scotland crush Netherlands by 9 wickets in tri-series opener

Scotland crush Netherlands by 9 wickets in tri-series opener

Led by Kirstie Gordon's triple-strike, Darcey Carter's breezy half-century and Katherine Fraser's all-round performance, Scotland cruised to a commanding 9-wicket win over Netherlands in the opening match of the tri-series in Edinburgh, on Thursday. Chasing a target of 142, Scotland cruised to victory with 31 balls to spare.

Electing to bat, Netherlands lost opener Phebe Molkenboer cheaply. However, Heather Siegers blazed away to a brisk start, cracking seven boundaries in her 16 ball stay. Even though she departed in the powerplay, by the end of the eighth over, the visitors looked comfortable at 69 for 2, with skipper Babette de Leede and Robine Rijke marshalling the innings.

De Leede was cleaned up for a run-a-ball 14 right after by Abtaha Maqsood, but Rijke held one end strong as Scotland clawed their way back with quick wickets. Three wickets fell in quick succession and Netherlands were reduced to 78 for 5 in the 11th over.

Rijke and Frederique Overdijk steadied the innings briefly, but the team's scoring rate dropped drastically through the course of their 53-run stand. A few wickets fell towards the end as Netherlands were held up at 141 for 8.

In response, Scotland broke little sweat. Carter, especially, tore into Iris Zwilling early, cracking four boundaries in the first two overs of the medium pacer, to get going. Fraser took her time, but in the fifth over, she shifted gear and found three successive boundaries off Isabel Woning as the duo brought up their half-century stand.

The partnership swelled to 100 before Carter departed, soon after bringing up her half-century in the 11th over. That break, however, didn't help Netherlands find their way back in the contest. If there were any hopes, Kathryn Bryce brushed those aside with her 12-ball 23, the last of the scoring shots – a boundary – taking the team over the line.

Brief Scores: Netherlands 141/8 in 20 overs (Heather Siegers 32, Robin Rijke 46; Kirstie Gordon 3-27, Katherine Fraser 1-19) lost to Scotland 144/1 in 14.5 overs (Darcey Carter 55, Katherine Fraser 56*) by 9 wickets