Young stars of UAE are at crossroads on path to top of women’s cricket

It was always going to be Sri Lanka. Six wins out of six in the Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier. A century for the peerless Chamari Athapaththu in the final.

And a place at the main event in Bangladesh with as little sweat expended as anyone could possibly manage in the heat of early summer in the UAE.

Only once were they seriously pushed, which was by the host nation in the semi-final in Abu Dhabi.

Eventually, class and experience won out then, too. The Sri Lankans shaded a win in the tournament’s decisive game, leaving the UAE with nothing to show for their endeavours.

It was not what they wanted. All they had their hearts set on was a place at the World Cup, and it felt so close. But at least they got widespread recognition, including from a great of the game.

“Only one team even came close [to beating Sri Lanka],” Sana Mir, the former Pakistan captain, said on commentary after Tuesday night’s final, in which Sri Lanka thrashed Scotland. “The UAE.”

It might have felt like little consolation for the home team. Judged by the number of tears shed after their 15-run loss on Sunday night, they were feeling like the world had ended, not just the World Cup.

1 Esha Oza, age 26, 79 matches

2 Theertha Satish, age 20, 66 matches

3 Khushi Sharma, age 21, 65 matches

4 Kavisha Kumari, age 21, 79 matches

5 Heena Hotchandani, age 23, 16 matches

6 Rinitha Rajith, age 18, 34 matches

7 Samaira Dharnidharka, age 17, 53 matches

8 Vaishnave Mahesh, age 17, 68 matches

9 Lavanya Keny, age 17, 33 matches

10 Siya Gokhale, age 18, 33 matches

11 Indhuja Nandakumar, age 18, 46 matches

But their performance in the qualifier – thumping wins against the Netherlands and Vanuatu, plus that classic duel with Sri Lanka – should be the springboard to