SYDNEY: Megan Schutt shined with the ball while Elyse Perry was impressive with the bat to help Aust­ralia women beat Pakistan by eight wickets in the opening fixture of their three-match Twen­t­y20 Inte­­r­national series at the North Sydney Oval on Tuesday.

After medium-pacer Sch­utt had taken five wickets to restrict the visitors — who opted to bat first — to 118, opener Perry smashed 57 off 40 balls to ensure the hosts wrap up the game with six overs to spare.

Perry had lost her opening partner and Australian captain Meg Lanning to a brilliant arm ball by Paki­stan left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal in the second over and first drop Tahlia McG­rath was cleaned up by Nida Dar with the scorecard reading 55-2 in the eighth.

Perry, however, carried on and was ably assisted by Ashl­eigh Gardner to take Austr­alia over the line. The pair combined for an unbeaten fourth-wicket stand of 64, which included Gardener’s 30 off 19 — an innings studded with three fours and a six.

Perry, on the other hand, plundered the Pakistan bowlers for seven boundaries and a maximum.

Pakistan’s batting show was in stark contrast of that of the Australians and a relentless Schutt ensured she kept the visitors under check, but only after Perry had struck with her fast bowling to clean up opener Muneeba Ali, ending the left-hander’s 27-run stand with Javeria Khan.

The next three Pakistan wickets fell for only a run and in the space of just eight deliveries. Pakistan captain Bismah Maroof was caught behind by wicket-keeper Beth Moo­ney off Schutt before the right-armer struck again to force a miscued shot by Sadaf Shamas for Perry to take an easy catch at mid-on three balls later.

Perry returned in the next over to castle Javeria (16) before Nida and Oma­ima Sohail sho­wed some resistance with a 25-run partnership for the fifth wicket. Nida, however, contributed only eight in the stand before she was caught and bowled by Alana King.

Pakistan’s only counter-punching effort — that of 37 off 31 balls — was powered by Omaima and Aye­sha Naseem, who hit three lusty blows for sixes and a boundary in her 24 off 20 before King castled her.

Omaima went on to score 30 off 36 — with the help of two fours — before becoming the first of Schutt’s last three dismissals to bundle out Pakistan.

Summarised scores:

PAKISTAN 118 in 20 overs (Omaima Sohail 30, Ayesha Naseem 24, Javeria Khan 16; Megan Schutt 5-15, Ellyse Perry 2-3, Alana King 2-16); AUSTRALIA 119-2 in 13.4 overs (Ellyse Perry 57 not out, Ashleigh Gardner 30 not out).

Published in Dawn, January 25th, 2023