New Delhi: India’s semifinal hopes were dealt a major blow after the Women in Blue were dealt a devastating blow in the crucial Group A encounter. Hatmanpreet Kaur made a valiant 54 (47). However, that could not save the side from defeat as Australia won by 9 runs.
As a result, Australia qualified for the semifinals with 8 points from 4 matches but India’s fortunes still hang in balance. India has 4 points from 4 games with their losses coming against Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand have 4 while Pakistan have 2.
This means the New Zealand side has a clear advantage over the Indian side. The White Ferns are just one win away from a place in the semifinals. The Match between Pakistan and New Zealand will determine the qualification fate of both India and New Zealand.
How can India qualify for semis?
India can still hope for a miracle and qualify for the semis. For that to happen, India’s arch-nemesis Pakistan first needs to defeat the New Zealand team in the final game of the Group A match.
If Pakistan wins, they will have 4 points along with India and New Zealand. However, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side will qualify for the knockout stage thanks to a better Net Run Rate.
‘Age-Old’ Batting collapse
India’s story of the chase against Australia was the classic and age-old story of batting collapse. The Women in Blue were poor in the field in the first innings which helped the Aussie batters pile up a good total. During the chase barring the half-century of Harmanpreet Kaur (54) and some contributions from Deepti Sharma (29) and Shafali Verma (20), none of the Indian batters were able to make a dent.
On the other hand, opting to bat first, Australia piled up a fighting total of 151/8 with opener Grace Harris top-scoring with 40 off 41 balls. Furthermore, stand-in captains Tahlia McGrath and Ellyse Perry chipped in with 32 each.