Photo credit: Peter Della Penna

Papua New Guinea Women's allrounder Sibona Jimmy floored USA Women by batting all 20 overs to make an unbeaten 58 before taking three wickets to decimate USA's chase in a 22-run win for PNG on DLS Method. 

By Peter Della Penna in Arbroath, Scotland (Twitter @PeterDellaPenna)
 
Allrounder Sibona Jimmy carried her bat for an unbeaten 58 off 50 balls to pace Papua New Guinea’s first innings total of 133 for 3 before thwarting USA’s upset bid in the Powerplay with a momentum shifting double-strike in the sixth over as PNG Women held of USA Women by 22 runs on DLS Method. The win helped PNG advance to the tournament semi-finals where they will taken on Group B winner Thailand on Thursday while USA falls back into the loser’s bracket to take on Netherlands.
 
USA were 30 for 0 after five overs, five runs ahead of DLS par score at that stage, but Jimmy claimed Nadia Gruny and Sindhu Sriharsha in the space of three balls to put PNG ahead of DLS calculations and they never again fell behind on the over by over count.
 
The upset bid looked promising for USA in the Powerplay thanks to the theatrics of Erica Rendler, who blitzed 35 off 26 balls. Rendler was dropped on a skied chance at mid-on off the very first ball of the chase bowled by Ravini Oa. The USA opener made PNG pay for the error with the most explosive innings produced by USA at the tournament. Rendler drove Oa straight over mid-on for four later in the first over, then tucked into Vicky Araa for a six heaved over long-on and a four punched through cover in the second over to get USA off to a flying start at 20 for 0 in two overs. Another four was edged just wide of the fielder at short third man in the third over as Rendler continued to hum.
 
But Rendler struggled for support at the other end. Gruny struggled to get the ball away, finally falling for 3 off 11 balls when she played back to Jimmy’s first ball in the sixth over and was given lbw. Sriharsha scored two off a bad misfield on her first ball before falling leg before missing a sweep to Jimmy on the third ball of the over to make it 36 for 2.
 
Rendler tried to swing momentum back USA’s way in the seventh, heaving Veru Frank to deep midwicket where a chance was spilled over the rope by Naoani Vare for another six. But after a single next ball, Shebani Bhaskar couldn’t find any gaps in the infield to end the over with three dots. The pressure on Rendler finally to keep up the scoring rate singlehandedly finally resulted in her wicket when she flicked Oa to deep midwicket in the eighth where Jimmy charged in for an excellent catch on the run.
 

USA managed nothing but singles through the next three overs as rain which had been falling since the start of the chase began to intensify. The umpires finally halted play after 10 overs with USA at 53 for 3, nine runs behind the DLS par score of 62 at the time. Play eventually resumed after a one-hour and 12-minute delay with USA’s new adjusted target set at 117 in 17 overs, leaving them 64 to get off seven overs.
 
Sugetha Chandhrasekar was stumped for 5 off the fourth ball after play resumed from Konio Oala. Bhaskar was bowled for 17 in the 14^th by Jimmy for her third wicket before Oala forced a second stumping with a failed charge from Wallerson to end the 15^th at 78 for 6.
 
Lisa Ramjit fought hard to keep the game alive, pulling a boundary through fine leg in an 11-run over in the 16^th, sandwiched around the runout of Uzma Iftikhar straying too far out of the non-striker’s end after Araa fielded a drive from Ramjit off her own bowling and underhanded into the non-striker’s stumps. USA needed 28 off the final over but Ramjit and Samantha Ramautar could only manage five singles between them to end on 94 for 7. Jimmy ended with 3 for 15 in her four overs while Oala took 2 for 15 to stifle USA after the first five overs.
 
Jimmy’s sensational day began with her first innings half-century. She struck six boundaries in her knock, but also capitalized on more poor fielding from USA. Jimmy was dropped on 29 in the 11^th over by Iftikhar at mid-off, who spilled the lofted drive moving right at head height off the bowling of Sara Farooq. It should have been Farooq’s second wicket after she trapped Vare leg before in the third over missing a sweep for 5.
 
Jimmy and Brenda Tau then added 56 for the second wicket before the stand was finally broken when Tau was bowled by Ramautar missing a flick for 24. Jimmy brought up her half-century with a two to deep midwicket in the 17^th, but was spilled again in the 19^th off Onika Wallerson when a miscued drive could not be claimed with a diving effort by Gruny.
 
Ramjit took the only other wicket to fall, ending a 57-run stand when she held onto a sharp return catch in her lap off Tanya Ruma for 29. Ramjit ended with 1 for 23 while Farooq claimed 1 for 19 and Ramautar 1 for 24, doing her best to keep control bowling with a wet ball since the fifth over of the PNG innings. USA’s fielders struggled in the conditions once again, giving away 15-20 runs on misfields in addition to the dropped chances.
 
Namibia will play Scotland in the other loser’s bracket playoff following USA’s match against Netherlands. Bangladesh won Group A after defeating Scotland on Tuesday, paving the way to play Ireland in the other tournament semi-final at Forfarshire CC after Ireland lost by two runs to Thailand, putting them into the runner-up slot in Group B.