Japan ‘s Wicket ( X / Twitter )
In a rather humiliating start to their maiden bilateral cricket tour, newbie Mongolia got a reality check against a rising Japan in the second T20I of the series. Notably, the match took place on Wednesday, May 8, at the Sano International Cricket Ground, situated in Sano, Japan.
Notably, after winning the toss Japan suffered an early jolt on the fifth ball of the match but it did not bother them ahead as skipper Kendel Fleming (41 off 36 balls) and his partner Wataru Miyauchi (72 off 54 balls) put up a 118-run stand for the second wicket to put the hosts in a commanding position. Thereafter, Sabaorish Ravichandran (54 off 24 balls) made merry of the situation and scored a quickfire fifty to add to the woes of the Mongolian bowlers.
Consequently, Japan ended up setting a mammoth target of 218 runs for the visitors. Playing in their maiden overseas tour, Mongolia hoped to make a strong start in the run chase but Japanese bowlers proved too lethal for them. It seemed like the visitors surrendered immediately under the pressure of the run chase. The young 17-year-old pacer, Kazuma Kato-Stafford, put up a stellar left-arm seam bowling display and claimed a five-wicket haul ( 5/7) while conceding a meagre seven runs in his spell.
Also Read: Japan breaks record for highest opening partnership in T20Is
The magnitude of the bowling impact can be understood by the fact that six batters of Mongolia went back into the hut with a duck reading against their name. Apart from Kazuma, Abdul Samad and Makoto Taniyama too chipped in wickets and shared two wickets apiece between them. This meant that Mongolia were handed an unwanted record for scoring the second-lowest team score in the history of T20 Internationals. Only the Isle of Man have registered the lowest score of 10 runs while playing against Spain, back in February 2023.
Check out the match highlights of Japan vs Mongolia game here:
Mongolia have a history of heaviest defeat during the Asian Games
Meanwhile, looking at how Mongolia is trying to grow as a cricket nation, they have been going through some forgetful times with the bat. Not long ago. It was during the Asian Games they entered into the world of cricket and played against the neighbouring Asian countries. It was during the mega event, they faced Nepal and the Mongolian bowlers ended up conceding a whopping 314 runs in a T20 game. In reply, the newbies were able to score only 41 runs to have a nightmarish start to their cricket history.
Also Check: Nepal break a flurry of records in opening game against Mongolia
However, as cricket is in its nascent stage in Mongolia, some cricket aficionados in Chris Hurd and Battulga Gombo have done some commendable work in promoting the sport for over a decade now. Citing their notable works, they helped start the game at various schools so that young kids get involved and learn about cricket. Besides, they also made an emphatic contribution to establishing a proper cricket ground across the nation, especially on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar, the national capital of the country.