Sophie Ecclestone could become the fastest woman to take 100 wickets in ODI cricket when England take on Pakistan on Sunday. Sky Sports.
Ecclestone took 3-26 in England’s first-ever ODI win over Pakistan and is currently on 98. She needs two wickets in the next match to beat the record set by Australian great Kathleen Fitzpatrick in 64 matches.
Australian pace bowler Megan Schutt (66 matches) and left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen (67) currently occupy second and third positions respectively.
Sunday, May 26th, 10:30am
Reflecting on England’s 37-run win against Pakistan in Derby, man of the match Ecclestone said: “I think we let a few balls go, it was really cold but to get three wickets and get the win at the end is fantastic.”
“I just try to bowl my best ball for longer. Sometimes I go for wickets but I have to keep my best ball in play and tell myself to use the arm ball when necessary.”
“I think we didn’t score enough runs, we could have scored a few more but we wanted to take wickets and keep the intensity high and I think we did that.”
England recorded a “sporadic” win against Pakistan in their ODI opener, with Alice Capsey (44) top-scoring while Charlie Dean (2-39), Lauren Bell (2-42) and Kate Cross (2-46) took two wickets each.
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England captain Heather Knight has admitted that their first ODI win against Pakistan can only be described as a “savage”.
Nida Dar’s Pakistan side frustratingly tormented the England players with some shaky team play until the end, resulting in Pakistan’s narrowest defeat against the hosts in an ODI match.
Pakistan are currently fifth in the ICC Women’s Championship with 16 points and the top six teams along with hosts India will be given automatic qualification to the 50-over World Cup in 2025.
With two matches remaining, it will be the final chance for the Nidus side to pick up some points. England will play a three-match ODI series against Ireland in September before taking on South Africa in the same format in December.
“It was a disappointing performance, we can do better, we had a few extra plays but in the end we got the job done,” England captain Heather Knight said.
“There were a lot of areas where I could have improved. We’ve talked a lot about finding the tempo in ODI cricket and the longer I do it and the more I do it, the better I will be.”
“There was a lot of stoppages and restarts, but we wanted one batsman to have the advantage and we needed to get our defense in better shape.”
England’s comprehensive win over the visitors in the T20 series earlier this month saw Ecclestone take five wickets from three matches to become England’s highest wicket-taker in the shortest format.
England v Pakistan match sees record attendance at Headingley
The 25-year-old has taken 118 wickets in T20 cricket, overtaking Katherine Sciver Brunt to become England’s top scorer.
With just five months to go until the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh, her wicket-taking ability and experience on the subcontinent in the Women’s Premier League will give her an edge in selection.
Preparations for games against Pakistan and New Zealand later this summer will be crucial, as England play three ODIs and T20Is as part of the multi-format Ashes in January ahead of the next 50-over World Cup in India.
Watch the second ODI between England and Pakistan in Taunton live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10:30am on Sunday (1st ball 11am) and it’s also available to stream on NOW.
England vs Pakistan ODI Series Match Schedule – Live on Sky Sports
May 23: First Women’s One Day International – England wins by 37 runs
May 26: 2nd Women’s One Day International – Taunton, 11am
May 29: 3rd Women’s One Day International – Chelmsford, 1pm
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