New Delhi: Team India will face Australia in their last group stage match of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 on Sunday, October 13. It’s a must-win clash for Harmanpreet and Co. as they look to seal a spot in the semi-final of the tournament.
The Women in Blue didn’t have a great start to the tournament and lost their opening match against New Zealand by 58 runs. After that, the Indian team defeated Pakistan and Sri Lanka by a big margin to stay alive in the tournament.
How can India qualify for the T20 World Cup semi-final?
Team India’s net run rate has jumped from -1.217 to +0.576 after two consecutive victories but they still have to beat Australia in the big clash to give themselves a best chance to qualify for the semifinals.
The easiest way for the Women in Blue will be to beat Australia and hope both Pakistan and New Zealand lose at least one of their two remaining matches. Team India will then qualify on points without having to rely on net run rate. If Australia lose their remaining two matches then India can also go through to the semis on points. In that case, only one team between New Zealand and Pakistan can make it to six points.
Even if India managed to beat Australia in their last match, a three-way tie with New Zealand and Australia is a big possibility. Team India needs to beat the Aussies by a huge margin as New Zealand have the advantage of playing the last league game.
Team India can also qualify with four points even if they lose against Australia provided both Pakistan and New Zealand lose at least one of their remaining matches. Harmanpreet and Co. also need to make sure that the margin of defeat against the Aussies is as small as possible.
‘Not worried about India, focus on Pakistan’: Annabel Sutherland
Speaking to the media before the Pakistan clash, Australian all-rounder Annabel Sutherland said that the team haven’t discussed about the clash against India and are rather focussed on doing well against Pakistan on Friday.
“We’re not talking about India match but Yeah I’m sure the leaders and the coaches are planning as they always do, looking at games they’ve played and that sort of thing, which is something we do on a consistent basis for teams we’re coming up against. But all our focus is on tomorrow’s game” Sutherland said in press conference.
Australian all-rounder Annabel Sutherland said that the team haven’t discussed much about the game against India and are rather focused on doing well against Pakistan on Friday. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
