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Bowlers and Feroza-Muneeba thump Nepal to give Pakistan NRR-boosting win
Pakistan kept their Women’s Asia Cup campaign alive with a thumping nine-wicket win over Nepal in Dambulla on Sunday evening.
Having lost their opening game to India, Pakistan were in a must-win situation and did not let their fans down. Nepal started briskly after being sent in. They had a strong finish as well. But the Pakistan bowlers and fielders – there were three run-outs – caused enough damage in the middle overs to restrict Nepal to 108 for 6. Gull Feroza and Muneeba Ali then smashed 105 in just 11.2 overs to kill the game. Feroza was the aggressor, scoring 57 off 35 balls, while Muneeba stayed unbeaten on 46 off 34.
The win boosted Pakistan’s net run-rate to 0.409 and lifted them to second position on the points table.
Samjhana Khadka, fresh from her match-winning half-century against UAE, slapped Fatima Sana over extra cover for four on the fourth ball of the innings. But she was late on the pull next ball, and ended up offering a simple catch to Nashra Sandhu at short midwicket.
The wicket did not affect Nepal’s intent. Sita Rana Magar, the other opener, and Kabita Kunwar, the No. 3, also opened their accounts with fours. The pair also hit a boundary each off Omaima Sohail to take the side to 29 for 1 after four overs.
In her first over, left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal had rapped Kunwar on the pads three times in three balls. When Iqbal returned for her second, the fifth of the innings, Kunwar tried to cut her but ended up edging it to the keeper. Nepal captain Indu Barma lasted just two balls; Iqbal beatadi her for pace with an arm ball that rattled the stumps. Sohail followed up Iqbal’s one-run, two-wicket over with a maiden as Nepal finished the powerplay on 30 for 3.
Nepal’s next boundary came in the ninth over when Rubina Chhetry lofted Sandhu down the ground for four. But Chhetry’s run-out in the next over kept Nepal in check. Shortly after that, Magar too was run-out while going for a non-existent second run.
After 15 overs, Nepal were 68 for 5, and it looked like they would struggle to reach 100. But Puja Mahato and Kabita Joshi switched gears after that. There was a period during their stand when the pair hit six fours in 18 balls. Mahato was run-out with five balls left in the innings but Joshi batted till the end and even hit Sana for the only six of the innings in the final over. Pakistan’s sloppy fielding also helped Nepal, who scored 40 in the last five overs.
If Nepal thought they had posted a decent total, Feroza and Muneeba showed it was anything but. Feroza smashed the first ball of the chase through the covers for four. She hit three more boundaries in the next two overs and moved to 20 off 16 balls. Muneeba had faced just two balls at that stage and was yet to open her account.
Muneeba did struggle for timing initially but did not take too long to hit her stride. In the sixth over, she hit Magar for three fours as Pakistan ended the powerplay on 52 for no loss.
Even when the field restrictions were relaxed, there was no respite for the Nepal bowlers, who not only erred in their lines and lengths but also lacked the backing of their fielders. There was not a single over during the chase that did not feature a boundary.
Feroza alone hit eight fours in the first eight overs, and brought up her maiden T20I fifty off 30 balls. By the time she fell, Pakistan needed just four runs, which Muneeba knocked off with yet another boundary.
Brief scores:
Pakistan Women 110 for 1 in 11.5 overs (Gull Feroza 57, Muneeba Ali 46*; Kabita Joshi 1-19) beat Nepal Women 108 for 6 in 20 overs (Kabita Joshi 31*, Sita Rana Magar 26, Puja Mahato 25; Fatima Sana 1-24, Sadia Iqbal 2-19) by nine wickets
(Cricinfo)
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Heat Index at Caution Level in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and Monaragala district.
Warm Weather Advisory issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre of the Department of Meteorology at 3.30 p.m. on 09 March 2026, valid for 10 March 2026.
The public are warned that the Heat index, the temperature felt on the human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Monaragala district.
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Five members of the Iranian women’s football team have been granted humanitarian visas in Australia after their elimination in the Asian Cup, the government in Canberra says.
Immigration Minister Tony Burke said the women “were moved to a safe location” by Australian police. He said other squad members had been told they are welcome to stay in the country.
The women had been due to fly home, but supporters had raised fears for their safety after the team declined to sing the national anthem ahead of their match against South Korea last week.
This prompted criticism in Iran, with one conservative commentator accusing the team of being “wartime traitors” and pushing for harsh punishment.
Australia’s humanitarian visa programme grants permanent protection to refugees and people in humanitarian need. Visa holders can live, work and study in the country.
Speaking early on Tuesday, Burke said the five players were happy for their names to be confirmed as Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh, and Mona Hamoudi.
“They want to be clear they are not political activists. They are athletes who want to be safe,” he said, adding that talks had been going on over several days.
He said that on Monday “it was made clear that there were five women who wanted to be able to stay in Australia”.
The group left their hotel the same day and were moved to a safe location by police.
Burke said he met the women at that location and then signed off for their applications to go onto humanitarian visas – a process completed at about 01:30 local time on Tuesday (15:30 GMT Monday).
“I say to the other members of the team, the same opportunity is there. Australia has taken the Iranian women’s soccer team into our hearts. These women are tremendously popular in Australia.
“But we realise they are in a terribly difficult situation with the decisions that they’re making,” the Australian minister said.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese later confirmed that the five players had been given humanitarian visas.
On Sunday evening, hundreds of supporters surrounded the Iranian Lionesses’ coach as it left the stadium on the Gold Coast, with chants of “save our girls”.
On Monday, the BBC witnessed dramatic scenes inside the team’s five- star hotel when several players left the lobby in a group after speaking to activists.
Shortly after they departed, a second group – including a translator and the head coach – burst in looking panicked, and rushed through the hotel before returning to their rooms.
A family member of one of the women – speaking on condition of anonymity – told Australian news site ABC they were being protected by police, and intended to claim asylum.
“I want to kiss the hands of everyone who helped,” the unnamed relative told ABC.
On Monday, US President Donald Trump took to his Truth Social platform to demand action.
Australia should “give asylum” to the women, Trump said in his initial post. “The US will take them if you won’t,” he added.
Around an hour later, Trump posted again to say he had spoken to Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and “five have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way”.
Trump’s post appeared to also suggest some of the team feared for the safety of their families back in Iran and so felt they must “go back”.
“In any event, the Prime Minister is doing a very good job having to do with this rather delicate situation. God bless Australia!” Trump said.
The Trump administration put all asylum decisions on hold at the end of last year, and has stopped issuing immigrant visas for citizens from dozens of countries including Iran. It has said the administration wants to bring “an end to the abuse” of the system.
Last year, two groups of Iranians – including people whose asylum applications had been unsuccessful – were deported from the US back to Iran. The groups reportedly included members of the LGBT community,who face severe legal and social repercussions in Iran.
[BBC]
The Iranian warship Iris Dena was given permission by India to dock three days before it was torpedoed by a US submarine, India has said.
Foreign Minister S Jaishankar said Iran had sought permission for three of its ships to dock at Indian ports on 28 February – the day the US and Israel began a war on Iran – and permission was granted by India on 1 March.
The ships’ movements between 1 and 4 March are not clear and nor is why only one of them made it to India.
The sinking of the Iris Dena, with 130 sailors on board, in international waters off Sri Lanka’s southern coast on 4 March marked a dramatic widening of the war – and raised questions about India’s authority in its backyard.
It was the first military strike outside the Middle East since the US and Israel launched their war on Iran. President Donald Trump has said destroying Iran’s navy is one aim of the assault.
The three Iranian ships – Iris Dena, Iris Bushehr and Iris Lavan – had all participated in a military exercise hosted by India between 15 and 25 February in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam.
They left Indian waters on 25 February and were likely to have been in international waters on 28 February – when the US and Israel began attacking Iran.
“The Iranian side had requested permission on 28 February for three ships in the region to dock at our ports. This was accorded on 1 March,” Jaishankar told parliament on Monday. “Iris Lavan actually docked on 4 March in Kochi. The crew is currently in Indian naval facilities. We believe that this was the right thing to do.”
On 4 March, Iris Dena sank after being hit by a torpedo fired from a US submarine, killing at least 87 of its crew members.
According to the Indian Navy, the Iris Dena was operating about 20 nautical miles – roughly 23 miles (37km) – west of Galle in waters that fall under Sri Lanka’s designated search-and-rescue zone on the day it was struck.
The US tracks vessels across the world’s oceans, and a quarter of its submarine fleet of 65-70 is at sea at any given time, according to analysts.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said last week the US had “perpetrated an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran’s shores” and that the warship was “struck in international waters without warning.”
Later, Sri Lanka said it had provided sanctuary for Iris Bushehr on 5 March, a day after it requested for docking following an engine malfunction.
Eventually, India also confirmed that Iris Lavan was docked in its southern city Kochi.
The BBC has written to the Iranian embassy in India and India’s external affairs ministry seeking clarification on the movements of the three Iranian naval vessels after Delhi granted them permission to dock.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has touted the attack on Iris Dena as an example of America’s military prowess, claiming it was “the first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War Two”.
While it is the first time since 1945 that an American submarine has sunk an enemy ship this way, the UK and Pakistan have both sunk vessels using torpedoes since then.
The Iris Dena was one of about 20 Iranian navy vessels destroyed since Israel and the US launched co-ordinated strikes on Iran.
[BBC]
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