🏏ICC Women's T20I WC 2024: Group A - Match 7: IndW vs PakW 🏏

🏏ICC Women's T20I WC 2024: Group A - Match 7: IndW vs PakW at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai on 06/10/2024 @ 3:30PM IST 🏏

Never before in this decade have India gone into a T20 World Cup match against Pakistan with pressure on their back and wind knocked out of their sails so early in the competition. It isn't doomsday yet for the Group A heavyweights, but Pakistan's opening day victory over reigning Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka followed by their own NRR-gutting 58-run loss at the hands of New Zealand has lent this otherwise superficial rivalry some meaningful context. Come Sunday (October 6), a high-on-confidence Pakistan would be waiting to take a stab at wounded India in what is a landmark game for Dubai.

Given the conviction exhibited by the Indian management in its rejigged top-six in the build up to the tournament, any changes to their batting order could be perceived as a knee-jerk reaction after a shock opening defeat. It was, after all, a rare blip in an otherwise solid World Cup cycle for their batters led by Smriti Mandhana (703) and Shafali Verma (617) up top who both fare among the top-10 scorers in this period. However, with their campaign in a precarious spot and a turnaround time of under 48 hours between games, India would want its batters to hit their straps quickly. India could actually take a leaf out of the New Zealand book and look to spread out [link devine copy] their best or most experienced batters to cover for contingencies like what unfolded on Friday night.

Which begs a question: did India mend something which was never broken to plug another gap? [link harman copy] In restoring to factory settings by reinstating Harmanpreet Kaur at no. 4 and bringing in another left-hander (Yastika Bhatia) to the line-up, India could potentially go in best prepared to negate Pakistan's biggest threat.

Left-arm spin twins Sadia Iqbal and Nashra Sandhu rarely get the recognition they deserve, but together the duo have accounted for 59 wickets in 27 games this World Cup cycle for Pakistan. The pair claimed a combined 5/32 in the 31-run loss Pakistan inflicted on Sri Lanka with Sandhu cleaning up the young guns and Sadia rummaging through the opponents' experienced lower middle-order to restrict them to 85/9.

The one-sidedness of this rivalry may still rear its ugly head after all the ballyhoo. After all, India comfortably lead 12-3 in the 15 meetings against Pakistan in the shortest format, their rivalry limited to World Cups and Asia Cups only. Pakistan's last victory against the neighbours came in the 2022 Asia Cup, but never would have India seemed so vulnerable before. The next stop in the Fatima Sana-led Pakistan's upward trajectory could be gate-crashing India's party.

India vs Pakistan

India squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt), 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

Pakistan squad: Fatima Sana (capt), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Gull Feroza, Iram Javed, Muneeba Ali (wk), Nashra Sandhu, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Amin, Syeda Aroob Shah, Tasmia Rubab, Tuba Hassan

Tournament form guide: On the back of a stunning bowling effort, Pakistan opened the tournament with a 31-run win against Sri Lanka in Sharjah. India, meanwhile, suffered a 58-run loss to New Zealand amid high drama in Dubai.

News brief: In the match against Sri Lanka, medium pacer Diana Baig only bowled one ball before she pulled up with what looked like a calf injury. It is understood that Baig did not train on the eve of the match and that she would be assessed on Sunday ahead of the game. India-Pakistan contests have rather been one-sided in favour of India. India have won five out of the seven matches they've played against Pakistan in T20 World Cups, with Pakistan last winning in the 2016 tournament. India have also dominated against them in T20s overall, having won 12 out of 15 games. Regardless, the encounter is expected to draw huge crowds, with over 10,000 tickets reportedly being sold for the game on Sunday.

Players to watch: Left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal is having her best year in T20Is. Among all players at the T20 World Cup, she has taken the most wickets in 2024, with 24 wickets in 15 games. She was impressive in the opener against Sri Lanka as well, taking three middle-order wickets, including that of the top-scorer Nilakshika Silva. She finished with figures of 3 for 17.

When: Sunday, October 6 at 6 PM Local | 7:30 PM IST

Where: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai

What to expect: Temperature in mid-30s making it a hot afternoon. There's only been one day game in Dubai so far this World Cup, and West Indies managed a lowly 118/6 due to lack of application from batters. The batting did seem to get easier as the game progressed in the setting sun. Chasing could therefore be the captain's choice at toss.

Team News

India: Full-strength India turned up for their pre-match training that focussed equally on nets as on the fielding drills. Wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh had a dedicated high-catching session. Radha Yadav, who did not feature against New Zealand, spent most of the day on the sidelines. While that's barely an accurate indicator of her match-readiness, the left-arm spinner had bowled only four overs across the two official warm-ups. If India seek diversity in their spin attack, her inclusion could be on the cards.

Probable XI: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Pooja Vastrakar, Shreyanka Patil/Yastika Bhatia, Asha Sobhana, Renuka Thakur

Pakistan: After sustaining a calf injury on Thursday, Diana Baig was on rest on the eve of the big game and remains a doubtful starter. A decision on her availability will be taken closer to match start.

Probable XI: Mubeena Ali (wk), Gull Feroza, Sidra Amin, Omaima Sohail, Nida Dar, Fatima Sana (C), Tuba Hassan, Aliya Riaz, Syeda Aroob Shah, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal

Did you know?

- The India-Pakistan clash is set to become a part of venue history as this will be the 100th T20I hosted by Dubai International Cricket Stadium, of which 92 have been the men's games.

- Sadia Iqbal is the leading wicket-taker in T20Is in this World Cup cycle with 39 scalps in 27 innings at 5.59.

- Harmanpreet Kaur needs 59 runs to become the second Indian in the top-three of the all-time leading run-scores in WT20Is, after Smriti Mandhana (3505).

- Shafali Verma is 50 runs away from entering the 2000-run club.

What they said

"When you go in with six bowling options, it's bound to happen," India bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi on under-bowling Pooja Vastrakar

"We have always wanted to play attacking cricket. Whichever team we played against would attack our bowlers from the word go. I wanted our team to have batters who can punish the bowlers from the first ball. We have worked a lot on this and you will see the results soon hopefully." - Pakistan captain Fatima Sana on what brand of cricket she wanted her team to play

Head-To-Head Records:

Matches Played 15

Won by India Women 12

Won by Pakistan Women 03

No Result 00

First-ever Fixture June 13, 2009

Most-recent Fixture July 19, 2024

Head to head - Last 5 Matches

IND Women won by 7 wickets (with 35 balls remaining), 19-Jul-2024

IND Women won by 7 wickets (with 6 balls remaining), 13-Feb-2023

PAK Women won by 13 runs, 07-Oct-2022

IND Women won by 8 wickets (with 38 balls remaining), 31-Jul-2022

IND Women won by 7 wickets (with 6 balls remaining), 12-Nov-2018

Probable Top Performers from IND-W vs PAK-W

Probable Best Batter: Smriti Mandhana

Star India women’s batter Smriti Mandhana could be the best batter in the upcoming game against Pakistan women. Mandhana has been in good form of late, although she failed to go big in the tournament’s first game for her side. She will certainly aim to improve her performance against Pakistan women.

Probable Best Bowler: Sadia Iqbal

Sadia Iqbal was exceptional for her side in the last game, taking three wickets and conceding 17 runs in four overs. She will hope for a good showing against India in the upcoming clash as well.

Today's Match Prediction: India women to win the match

Scenario 1

India Women win the toss and opt to bowl first

PP Score: 35-45

PAK-W: 135-145

India Women win the match

Scenario 2

Pakistan Women win the toss and opt to bowl first

PP Score: - 50-60

IND-W: 150-160

India women win the match