‘I’m sure there are many more wins ahead’ – Nisha Ali

It could have been Sterre Kalis’ day. It ended up being Nisha Ali’s, as the United Arab Emirates batter hit 69 in 59 balls to upstage Kalis, who had scored a wonderful 68-ball 88, and hand the Netherlands a six-wicket defeat in their opening match of the ICC Women’s World T20 Qualifier 2018.

It was the game of the day. The Netherlands, the home side, first put up 137/3. The UAE crossed the line with two balls in hand, Chaya Mughal giving Ali great support for the second wicket with 36 runs off 41 balls.

“Obviously it was an important match, we wanted to start this tournament with a win. It was team work. I believe our team is good with chasing. We proved it, and we are happy with it,” said Ali after the game, her voice hoarse from all the shouting.

“It was the first game. Both teams were giving it their best. It’s about how you hold your nerve till the last. Our team has shown good character till the end and finished well. It’s wonderful, it’s tremendous. The way we have been playing in the past and the way we are looking now in this tournament, I’m sure there are many more wins ahead for us.

“It was a good total on the board. I thought we had a good side as batters. We believed in ourselves. We knew that we were going to chase it. That’s what helped us.”

Was it her best innings? “You can say that. While chasing it’s one of the best of mine,” said Ali, the India-born all-rounder who was playing her first international game.

“Very happy, because they wanted me to perform. I’m playing in the team as a pure batter [she did return 0/17 in her four overs], so my runs, if I chip in, are very, very important. I’m sure they all are happy about that.

“I just told one thing (to Mughal): ‘Let’s do it’. That’s all. Both of us, when we go in there, we know our roles, what we are there for. Too many instructions and pressure doesn’t work. So both of us enjoyed our innings. She was enjoying my shots, I was enjoying her shots. So we had a lovely time in the centre.”

Well as Ali played, Kalis’ innings was outstanding too, and might have resulted in a win for her side another time.

“That’s amazing. The way she played … I really the strokes she played, so it’s good to see girls doing well in women’s cricket. Girls are coming with better shots. It was a treat to watch her innings,” said Ali.

It got tight in the end. Ali, the top run-scorer and top wicket-taker at the ICC Women's World T20 Qualifying Series Asia Region in Bangkok late last year, was out with 23 runs left to score, and Mugha fell soon after, leaving Chamani Senevirathne with some work to do.

The former Sri Lanka captain did what was asked of her, accompanied by her screaming teammates.

“I was nervous, I was very nervous. Indeed, yeah. Everybody was nervous. Specially in those last six balls. But we were confident we have the batters who can finish it,” said Ali.

Next up are Papua New Guinea, who lost their opening game to Bangladesh by eight wickets.

“This format is such that you can’t keep thinking about … what’s gone is gone. It’s good we started off with a win. Definitely we are confident about it. We can’t take any team lightly. We’ll have to play from the start tomorrow, and hoping for the same result,” said Ali.