India withdraws from the Women’s T20 World Cup
Australia ended India’s Women’s T20 World Cup campaign with a convincing six-wicket win on Sunday, raising fresh questions about Harmanpreet Kaur’s future as India’s T20 captain.
Chasing 171, the six-time champions completed the target in 19 overs thanks to the 100-run match-winning partnership between Ellyse Perry and Ashley Gardner.India put pressure on Australia early in the chase, reducing them to 68/3 after dismissing Phoebe Litchfield, Georgia Foale and Beth Mooney cheaply. However, the experienced Perry (56 off 38 balls) and the hard-hitting Gardner (53 not out off 29 balls) turned the match around with a clinical display of batting.
Perry relied on timing and placement, hitting eight boundaries during her innings, while Gardner attacked the Indian spinners with powerful strokes. By the time Perry was dismissed, Australia were firmly in control and eventually secured a place in the semi-finals with a perfect record in Group A.Earlier, India had posted 170/4, a total that looked competitive only because of skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s explosive knock of 56 off just 27 balls.
Openers Smriti Mandhana (38) and Shafali Verma (34) gave India a steady start with a 66-run partnership, but the scoring rate remained below expectations.Shafali was sent off while trying to accelerate, while Mandana was run out after getting mixed up with Jemima Rodriguez. Jemima scored 34 off 28 balls but struggled to maintain the momentum and was eventually retired before the final over.Harmanpreet changed the momentum late in the innings, smashing three successive sixes off Australian captain Sophie Molyneux in the final over, helping India score 23 runs in the last six balls. However, the partnership of Perry and Gardner proved too strong as Australia cruised to victory and were joined by South Africa in the semi-finals.