The Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 is almost on its concluding note and will be getting one of its finalist on Thursday, February 23. The first semi-final of the tournament will be between defending champions Australia and India at Newlands in Cape Town.
India reached the knockouts by finishing second in Group B with three wins and a loss, while Australia topped Group A and won all its fixtures to sail into the semis. However, it would be a difficult challenge for the Women in Blue, as they have previously failed to defeat Australia in major-stage matches. For instance, India lost last year’s World Cup final to the Women in Yellow and later also went on to lose the 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medal match.
Talking about India’s performance in the ongoing world cup, Renuka Singh has been so far the best bowler for them in the event with seven wickets, including a fifer against England. Meanwhile, Richa Ghosh and Smriti Mandhana have impressed with the bat. Although if India wants to make their way into the final, they’ll need to put up an all-round show against mighty Australia in the semi-final.
On the other hand, the Aussie side will look to maintain their dominance with a full-strength line-up.
In the meantime, the second semi-final will be played between hosts South Africa and England on Friday (February 24) at the same venue. Like Australia, England also won all their group-stage matches and have put up a great team show so far.
On the contrary, South Africa somehow managed to make its way into the semis on the basis of their net run rate. Therefore, if the hosts want to reach the final, then they’ll need to come up with their best against Group B table toppers.
England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt and Sophie Ecclestone have played a significant role in the team’s sensational performance in the ongoing event. Sciver-Brunt (176 runs) is the top run-scorer in the tournament, while Ecclestone is the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with eight scalps to her name.
On that note, let’s have a look at the schedule and squads of the four semi-finalists:
Fixtures
- AUS vs IND, 1st semi-final: February 23 at Newlands in Cape Town – 01:00 pm GMT / 03:00 pm LOCAL
- ENG vs SA, 2nd semi-final: February 24 at Newlands in Cape Town – 01:00 pm GMT / 03:00 pm LOCAL
Squads
Australia: Meg Lanning (c), Alyssa Healy, Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Heather Graham, Grace Harris, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham.
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Richa Ghosh, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Devika Vaidya, Radha Yadav, Renuka Thakur, Anjali Sarvani, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Shikha Pandey.
England: Heather Knight (c), Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Katherine Brunt, Alice Capsey, Kate Cross, Freya Davies, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn, Amy Jones, Nat Sciver, Lauren Winfield-Hill, Danni Wyatt.
South Africa: Sune Luus (c), Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Lara Goodall, Ayabonga Khaka, Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Shabnim Ismail, Tazmin Brits, Masabata Klaas, Laura Wolvaardt, Sinalo Jafta, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Anneke Bosch, Delmi Tucker.
