After Gargi Bhogle blistered a drive for four off the penultimate delivery, the left-hander miscued a heave against Nomvelo Sibanda that dribbled away tamely for a single as a drama-filled chase ended with a whimper for USA Women. 

Photo credit: Willow TV

By Peter Della Penna (Twitter/X @PeterDellaPenna)
 
In a match filled with no shortage of drama – good, bad and ugly – the USA Women could not get over the line in a see-saw contest against Zimbabwe Women, falling just short of chasing down a target of 137 to lose by one run in the 2^nd T20I at Grand Prairie Stadium on Sunday in Texas. Needing 15 to win off the final over, USA managed to get the equation down to three to win and two to tie off the final ball, but left-arm pacer Nomvelo Sibanda managed to restrict Gargi Bhogle to just a single to secure a series victory for the visitors. 
 
The quality of play in the match was diminished by repeated miscues from both sides, but it did nothing to lessen the tension especially during USA’s chase of Zimbabwe’s first innings total of 136 for 5. USA got off to an impressive start to the chase behind an aggressive approach from Disha Dhingra, who shook off her struggles from two days earlier to help USA end the Powerplay at an impressive 46 for 2. Yet, it was not a blemish-free innings by any means and her partners failed to give her adequate support. 
 
Chetna Reddy Pagydyala was the first wicket to fall in the fourth over, having made just 4 in a 32-run opening stand with Dhingra. The left-hander paid the price when she heaved across the line in frustration and wound up having her leg stump knocked back by a length delivery from medium pacer Adelle Zimunu. The Zimbabwe first-change bowler struck again in her next over when Isani Vaghela drove a wide half-volley straight to Loreen Tshuma at cover for 2 to make it 35 for 2 one ball into the sixth. 
 
Dhingra took momentum back for USA by cutting Zimuni through backward point before driving the next ball back down the pitch to split mid-on and mid-off for consecutive fours. However, she left an opening on the final ball of the Powerplay when she punched Zimunu to cover and took off for a suicide single on 33 only to escape as a throw to the non-striker’s end went wide. Dhingra played a trademark lofted drive over extra cover to the boundary to bring up USA’s 50 two balls into the seventh over but then offered another life on 46 in the 10^thover when shoveling Beloved Biza to long-off where a straightforward waist high catch was shelled, allowing Dhingra to collect two runs. Dhingra tapped a single into midwicket off the first ball of the 11^th to bring up a 36-ball half-century, her fourth in T20Is for USA. 
 
Meanwhile, Bhakti Shastri struggled mightily at the opposite end. A series of attempted tap and run singles against Zimbabwe’s spinners wound up without any runs as Shastri struggled to place the ball into gaps to allow Dhingra to set off confidently from the non-striker’s end. Shastri’s frustration finally reached its breaking point later in the 11^th shortly after Dhingra brought up her half-century when the former Saurashtra player came down the pitch and set off on contact with a drive straight to mid-on. A simple collection and throw by Chiedza Dhururu from 15 yards hit the non-striker’s stumps with Shastri five yards short to end her innings on 5 off 16 balls and turned the score to 68 for 3. 
 
Zimbabwe’s hit or miss fielding continued to keep USA in the match though as Pooja Ganesh was dropped on 4 in the 13^th over when a top-edged sweep against Tshuma’s offspin was put down on a basic catching opportunity at short fine leg. Dhingra then cut Biza’s first ball of the 14^th over straight to cover but was put down on a juggling head-high chance on 56. Back on strike later in the over, Dhingra tried to back away from the stumps to access the off side with a drive but missed and was finally bowled by Biza for 57 to make it 81 for 4. 
 
Momentum shifted back and forth in the 17^th as Ganesh swept Tshuma for four to start the over before Ritu Singh took advantage of a misfield in the ring at cover to get her second boundary. Trying to go big off the final ball, Ritu cleared her front leg on a half-tracker pitching well outside leg stump only for a missed heave to go off the inside of her leg and back onto the stumps to bowl her for 15 at 108 for 5 as USA went into the final three overs needing 29 to win. 
 
Bhogle was on 4 on the final ball of the 19^th when a slog to deep midwicket off Zimunu was spilled to allow two runs to be taken, setting up the final over equation of 15 to win with Ganesh on strike on 24. Ganesh clipped the first ball from Sibanda for two through the leg side before Sibanda responded with a leg-stump yorker to dismiss Ganesh for 26. 
 
Geetika Kodali arrived at No. 8 and the first ball from Sibanda was a wide sprayed down the leg side to bring the equation to 12 off four legal deliveries. Kodali then played a reverse scoop to a half-volley outside off stump and timed it perfectly to beat short third for four. With eight off three, Kodali mistimed a heave to the leg side that dribbled off an inside edge onto her pads and into square leg for one. Needing seven off two with Bhogle back on strike, the left-hander creamed a full delivery just past Sibanda’s head and away to the mid-off rope for a boundary. 
 
A cat and mouse game ensued as Sibanda first pulled out ahead of her final delivery before Bhogle subsequently did the same. When the final ball was eventually sent down on a good length outside off, Bhogle went for a leg side heave that produced a bottom edge into her feet that ricocheted tamely toward point where wicketkeeper Modester Mupachikwa collected and ran back to the stumps to ensure a second run could not be taken to send the match into a would-be Super Over. Bhogle ended on 11 not out off 6 balls while Kodali remained 5 not out off 2 as USA officially ended on 135 for 6. 
 
Sibanda finished with 1 for 30 off four overs. Zimunu took 2 for 26 off three but once again could have had better figures if not for multiple drops off her bowling. Offspinners Biza and Tshuma took 1 for 22 and 1 for 27 off their four overs respectively. Kelis Ndhlovu was Zimbabwe’s most economical bowler on the day, conceding just 0 for 14 off her four overs of left-arm spin.
 
Zimbabwe was sent in to bat at the start of the day after USA won the toss in a home lineup that included one change as Maahi Madhavan was left out in exchange for Jivana Aras. Kodali struck first for USA in the fourth over, getting Ndhlovu to chip a full ball straight to Dhingra at short extra cover for 18 to make it 23 for 1. Aras came on in the eighth over as USA’s fifth bowler and struck with her fourth ball as an inswinger beat Mupachikwa and trapped her in front of the stumps to win an lbw appeal for 6 making it 40 for 2. Aras claimed her second in the 16^th when she came around the stumps to left-handed Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano and produced an edge off a length delivery angled in to dismiss the Zimbabwe captain for 40 making it 93 for 3 with 27 balls to go. 
 
But the visitors added 41 off the final four overs aided by some crucial miscues from USA in a match decided by the tightest margin. Ritu came back in the 17^th to bowl her second over of offspin on the day and produced a chance off the bat of Tshuma on 26, who was teased into coming down the track to sky a drive to long-on. But Dhingra misjudged the chance badly, coming in five yards off the rope only to have the ball land inches over the rope for six. Three balls later, Natasha Mtomba was on strike and this time clobbered a no-doubter off a full length ball, sending a six over long-on that landed 20 yards behind Dhingra at the long-on rope. 
 
Mtomba then charged USA captain Aditi Chudasama in the 18^th, driving her over cover for four. The over ended with Tshuma heaving Chudasama through midwicket for what should have been at most two runs but Aras paid the price for taking a poor route to the ball and her attempted recovery slap to try to keep the ball inside the rope wound up in vain. 
 
Tshuma eventually fell in the final over for 46 to Kodali as her attempted slog over midwicket while trying to bring up a would-be half-century in style was intercepted by Pagydyala just inside the rope to make it 134 for 4, ending a brisk 41-run partnership with Mtomba across 25 balls. A single was struck by new batter Biza off the penultimate ball before Mtomba drove a single to Dhingra at long-on before the attempted return to come back for a second was denied by Dhingra’s relay to Kodali at the non-striker’s stumps to dismiss Biza for the final wicket. But the run taken before the final runout in the sequence provided the winning margin. 
 
Kodali ended with figures of 2 for 19 off four overs and conceded the only wide bowled by USA in a very disciplined performance by the entire bowling unit. Offspinners Chudasama and Singh were both expensive, conceding 0 for 35 off four and 0 for 23 off two overs respectively though neither received much support from their fielders. Vaghela was USA’s most economical bowler on the day, giving away just 14 off three overs. Aras took a solid 2 for 18 off three while legspinner Saanvi Immadi returned a respectable 0 for 23 off her four overs. 
 
The teams meet again for the third and final T20I of the series on Tuesday in Texas before they commence with two ODIs starting on Thursday.