The expectations are at an all-time high and the stakes can't get higher as India gear up to take on Australia at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Sunday, October 13, with a place in the semifinals up for grabs.
The Women in Blue find themselves in a must-win situation and have their backs against the wall. Their form has been a bit shaky coming into the contest against Australia. They have played 19 T20Is in 2024 thus far with 13 wins, five defeats and a no result.
India suffered a major upset in the finals of the ACC Women's Asia Cup before coming into the World Cup. They were comprehensively beaten by Sri Lanka in the finals and were unable to defend their title. In addition to that, the start of their World Cup campaign was rough after they were outplayed by New Zealand by 58 runs.
On the other hand, their adversaries have been far more consistent. Australia have played 15 T20Is in 2024 thus far with 13 wins and two losses. The two losses that they have suffered this year have come against India and South Africa.
However, the biggest cause of concern for Australia is the fitness of their skipper and wicketkeeper-batter Alyssa Healy. Healy suffered a foot injury during the clash against Pakistan and had to limp off the field before finishing the game. If she fails to make it for the India clash then Australia will have to look towards Tahlia McGrath for captaincy and Beth Mooney to fulfil the role behind the stumps.
Sharjah Cricket Stadium Pitch Report
The pitch at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium offers low bounce and therefore shot-making becomes quite difficult. Spinners will dictate terms during the contest and the wicket will become slower as the game progresses.
Sharjah Cricket Stadium T20I Record and Stats
Total T20I Matches: 56
Matches won batting first: 32
Matches won bowling first: 24
Average first innings score: 140
Average second innings score: 117
Highest total scored: 215/6 by AFG vs ZIM
Highest score chased: 179/6 by Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan
Lowest total recorded: 38 all out by Hong Kong vs PAK
Lowest total defended: 119/7 by BAN-W vs SCO-W
Australia squad: Alyssa Healy (c & wk), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham
India squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh, D Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, S Sajana
