India Kick-Off Women’s T20 World Cup With Thumping Victory Over Pakistan
Mandhana, Sharma Star In 64-Run Victory over Pakistan
India confirmed our Women’s T20 World Cup predictions by kicking off their opening match of the global tournament with a commanding 64-run victory over arch-rivals Pakistan at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Sunday afternoon.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, India suffered a couple of early setbacks with opener Shafali Verma being dismissed in the very first over for five runs before Jemimah Rodrigues was sent back to the pavilion for just one run in the fourth over.
However, the Women in Blue then found their stride with Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur at the crease, with the pair putting on an excellent partnership of 91 runs in just 63 deliveries to get their side to 109/3 by the 14th over.
Mandhana was the more aggressive of the two, scoring 68 runs in just 44 deliveries, including nine 4s and two 6s. India’s skipper was dismissed by Fatima Sana in the 17th over for 65 runs off 35 balls, before Richa Ghosh smashed a quick-fire 34 (17) which saw India set a target of 170/6 in their 20 overs.
Muneeba Ali gave Pakistan a good start in their chase, scoring 41 runs off 35 balls, but she lacked support, largely due to the incredible performance of Deepti Sharma, who was responsible for Ali’s run-out in the 10th over and took five wickets for just 10 runs.
Pakistan were eventually bowled out for just 106 runs in the 17th over and dropped to second-bottom in the Group A standings, while India’s victory took them to second place, only behind the Australian Women on net run rate.
Women’s T20 World Cup Standings After First Round of Matches
With all 12 participating nations having now played one game each, the group standings at the Women’s T20 World Cup are starting to take shape, with Australia and England leading their sections. India, Bangladesh, Scotland and the West Indies also notched up wins in their opening games.
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3.250 |
| 2 | India | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3.200 |
| 3 | Bangladesh | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.407 |
| 4 | Netherlands | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −0.407 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −3.200 |
| 6 | South Africa | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −3.250 |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England (H) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4.350 |
| 2 | Scotland | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2.000 |
| 3 | West Indies | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.118 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −0.118 |
| 5 | Ireland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −2.000 |
| 6 | Sri Lanka | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −4.350 |
