Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier Roundup – Netherlands, Scotland qualify

Welcome to this week’s Emerging Cricket Roundup, this week a special edition covering the Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier in Nepal

Headlines

Netherlands, Scotland secure qualification

USA step up, Thailand slide back

A rough week for Africa & Asia miss out

Netherlands, Scotland secure qualification

It was a joyous fortnight for the two European associates as both qualified for the main event in England, with the Netherlands securing their maiden Women’s T20 World Cup appearance and their first Women’s World Cup since 2000.

The Dutch qualified at the first opportunity after a 5 game winning streak. After overcoming Zimbabwe by 22 runs on the opening day, the Lionesses got the better of the more fancied Scotland in a 7-run win. A thumping 87* from Sterre Kalis set up a total of 150, and a calm head from Heather Siegers conceded just three runs in the final over of the chase where Scotland needed eleven.

The next game was an even closer affair against hosts Nepal. The hosts had been kept to 97/7 after 17 overs in a chase of 141, before Rubina Chetry and Sita Rana Magar unleashed. It took a calm head from Siegers again to defend 13 off the final over, as the Dutch secured a 2-run win. A more comfortable win over Thailand followed after Iris Zwilling and Isabel van der Woning’s demolition of the Thai top order.

Netherlands qualified for the Super Six top of their group, taking forward four points and already on the brink of a World Cup debut. Facing USA in their first Super Six match, the Lionesses knew a win would secure qualification with two games to spare. Another miserly bowling performance set up a chase of 130 at the TU ground, and a blistering start by Heather Siegers and a confident 46* from Phebe Molkenboer got the Dutch well ahead of the rate. Rain intervened after 12 overs, and prevented further play with the Dutch 90/2 and 21 ahead of the DLS par. The team, on confirmation of their World Cup debut, celebrated with a slip-and-slide session on the soaked covers.

Heavy defeats at the hands of Ireland and then Bangladesh brought the Dutch down to earth and meant they eventually finished fourth, but the job was complete, with the Lionesses return to the global stage for the first time since the 2000 ODI World Cup.

Scotland took the longer route to back-to-back T20 World Cups. Upset by the Dutch in their opening fixture, the Wildcats found their rhythm, completing big wins over Zimbabwe, Thailand and then Nepal to advance in 2nd place and carry two points forward.

Faced with celtic rivals Ireland to open their Super Six campaign, the Scots took a crushing win reminiscent of their semi-final victory against the same opposition two years ago. Sarah Bryce, Katherine Fraser and Megan McColl set up a score of 160/5, before Kathryn Bryce blew away Ireland’s top order, bowling them out for 121.

This will be the first Women’s T20 World Cup to feature four European teams.

The last time four European teams played at any Women’s Cricket World Cup was in 1997, when Denmark, England, Ireland & Netherlands played at 11 team ODI World Cup in 1997 (administrated by the IWCC rather than the ICC).

— Hypocaust (@hypocaust.bsky.social) 1 February 2026 at 11:37

With four points on the board and a healthy net run rate, Scotland were on the brink of qualification, until they came up against Bangladesh. Set 192 to win, and bowled out for 101, the Wildcats suddenly had their NRR flipped into the negative, and came under threat from the USA, for whom a decent win in the final game would send them ahead of the Scots and into the top four.

Scotland came out swinging, however, with Darcy Carter and Alisa Lister’s fast-paced knocks of 52 and 43 setting up a strong 178 run target. The USA were kept in check throughout the chase, and eventually succumbed to the run rate pressure as the Scots took a 41-run win and 3rd place on the table. Netherlands and Scotland join Ireland and Bangladesh in qualifying for the 12-team World Cup in England in June.

USA step up, Thailand slide back

It was a much improved showing from the USA at the global qualifier, finishing as the best team to miss out in 5th place, having finished last at the previous two editions of the event. The team took victory in a competitive clash with Namibia, and a comfortable chase over PNG to qualify for the Super Sixes, behind Bangladesh and Ireland.

Defeat against the Netherlands followed, but the USA picked up their first win against Thailand by a 28-run margin to keep their World Cup dreams alive. Though chasing 179 with 8 balls to spare to qualify in their final game against Scotland proved a bridge too far, the USA side has shown a massive step-up over the past two years. Tara Norris led the tournament wicket tally at 15, taken at an average of 8.6.

On the other side of the coin, Thailand’s slide back into the pack becomes ever clearer. Despite getting off to a good start with a comfortable chase against hosts Nepal, cracks in the Thai side started to show as they edged past Zimbabwe by a single run, before defeats to Scotland and Netherlands dented their hopes. Taking no points through to the Super Sixes, the Thai campaign ground to a halt. Defeat by 39 runs to Bangladesh, 28 runs to the USA and then 62 runs to Ireland showed a fragile batting line up dependent on three players. Narumeol Chaiwai, Nannapat Koncharoenkai and Natthakam Chantam all made the top-ten run scores, but at the same time the Thai side were bowled out in three out of seven matches. Their fielding performances, once the pride of the associate game, now look rusty as a lack of competitive cricket in recent years strangles progress.

A rough week for Africa & Asia miss out

Whilst this was a joyous event for Europe, qualifying three sides, and showed huge progress for the USA, it has come at the expense of the Africa and Asian regions.

Both of the African representatives, Zimbabwe and Namibia, went winless and finished bottom of their respective groups. Though both had their moments, Namibia took their matches against USA and PNG to the final over, and Zimbabwe came within two runs of beating Thailand, both were swept aside when facing stronger opposition. For Zimbabwe, the resource advantage of being a full member still has not translated into a successful Women’s programme, and whose inclusion in the upcoming ODI Women’s Championship looks increasingly ill-judged and unfair.

For Asia, Bangladesh’s unbeaten campaign is soured by disappointing Thai effort and a 6th place finish. Nepal meanwhile, can take some pride in their 8th place finish in their debut. A win against full member opposition in Zimbabwe and a narrow defeat against Netherlands were high points for the developing side. Perhaps most pride should be in the success Nepal have had in hosting their biggest ever ICC event. In particular, upgrades to the TU ground begin to realise its potential as a world-class facility. Nevertheless, there will be a sense of disappointment in the region that they were not closer to a fifth representative at the expanded event.

You’re reading Emerging Cricket — brought to you by a passionate group of volunteers with a vision for cricket to be a truly global sport, and a mission to inspire passion to grow the game.

Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, please subscribe for regular updates, and follow EC on X, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Don’t know where to start? Check out our features list, country profiles, and subscribe to our podcast. Support us from US$2 a month — and get exclusive benefits, by becoming an EC Patron.