With two impressive wins already in their kitty, India Women are going to meet their arch rivals Pakistan in their 3rd encounter.
Needless to explain the importance of this match when no one has yet got over the dramatic Champions Trophy final between their counterparts a few weeks ago.
It is 11th match of this mega event which starts at 3PM (according to IST). And surely it’s gonna be a Super Sunday once again when the two teams meet at Derby.
While India has been on an unbeaten run in this tournament so far, Pakistan is struggling to find its feet after losing both their previous matches. As a result, Pakistan (placed at 8th position) is far behind its Indian counterpart who are currently placed 2nd in the points table.
As far as head-on matches between India and Pakistan in Women’s World Cup are concerned, India would be looking to maintain their dominance over the later.
Both the teams have faced each other twice in the World Cup event earlier i.e. in 2009 and 2013 with India winning on both the occasions.
During 2009 WC, India crushed Pakistan by winning the match by 10 wickets.
Some facts are as follows:-
1. India won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first.
2. The match lasted only 39 overs including both the innings.
3. Pakistan were bowled out for just 57 runs in 29 overs.
4. Indian openers reached the target in 10 overs quite comfortably without much hassle.
5. Only two of Pakistani players (Sana Mir and Nain Abidi) crossed 10 as their individual scores.
6. Three Pak players got out for a duck.
7. Rumeli Dhar (India) took 3 wickets conceding just 7 runs off 8 overs including 5 maidens.
8. Player of the Match – Rumeli Dhar
2013 World Cup match was held at Cuttack in India. Once again India outclassed Pakistan, highlights being:-
1. Pakistan won the toss and invited India to bat first.
2. Riding on half centuries of Nida Dar and Nain Abidi, Pakistan made 192 for the loss for 7 wickets in their allotted 50 overs.
3. Mithali Raj made unbeaten 103 and led India to win with 4 over remaining.
4. M. Raj’s 4th ODI century
5. Pakistan’s highest total in WC till then.
6. Player of the game – Mithali Raj (India)
As of now, there are five key players to look for in Indian team – Smriti Mandhana, captain Mithali Raj, Deepti Sharma, Jhulan Goswami and Harmanpreet Kaur. On the other hand, for Pakistan there are three main players i.e. Javeria Khan (senior most player), captain Sana Mir (most experienced) and Ayesha Zafar.
It is evident that win or loss in Indo-pak matches is highly dependent on effective execution of plans under extra pressure. The level of difference between the two teams may easily be figured out through the fact that Pakistan is making its 3rd WC appearance till date as against 8th time appearance by India.
Just before the big match, Pakistan got a bad news as vice captain and in-form all-rounder Bismah Mahroof has been ruled out to play further in this tournament. This may be a big blow to the Pakistani team. She has been replaced by Iram Javed.
With all the facts and stats placed above, India Women have a clear edge over the opposition to win this particular contest and even if you are not a cricket freak, you can’t afford to miss this rare opportunity of watching this high voltage clash between Women in Blue and Women in Green.
So just book your time and watch the live telecast only on Star Sports.
‘Gully’ cricket player and close observer of Indian Cricket team and it’s matches. Straight forward and still socially admirable personality. Strong belief in teamwork and possess high leadership skills.
