Women’s T20 World Cup: India Reach Maiden Final Against England Due To Rain Washed
Nagpur updates:- Sparking demands for the International Cricket Council to include reserve days in future events, India reached a maiden women’s Twenty20 World Cup final on Thursday after their last four clashes against England were washed out.
The undefeated team of Harmanpreet Kaur was due to face the Sydney Cricket Ground 2009 winners, but the rain started to pour early in the day with hardly any let-up. The umpires called it off without a ball being bowled, with a minimum of 10 overs per side required for a result and no break in the weather. Normally, a Twenty20 match needs five overs per side but the rules are different for ICC tournaments.
Four-time Australian champions are scheduled to take on South Africa in the second semi-final today, with that match also under pressure.
Without a reserve day, the two-group highest-ranking teams move into the final if a play is not feasible. That would pit India against South Africa on Sunday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, where organizers hope to attract 90,000 plus fans, denying Australia a chance to defend their crown.
Sad’ for tournament A reserve day for the final is needed and some players have criticized the lack of one for the semis, with England captain Heather Knight among those calling for change.
“If both semi-finals are lost the tournament would be a sad time,” she told reporters ahead of the match. “It’s definitely going to be a shame if it happens and I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of pressure on the ICC to change that.” Cricket Australia chief Kevin Roberts said he was seeking clarification from the ICC to add a day of the reserve with the weather in Sydney looking alarming, but the request was denied.
“We’ve asked the question and it’s not part of the playing conditions and we’re accepting that,” he told SEN radio in Melbourne.
“It gives you a reason to reflect and think about how you could change things in the future, but going to a tournament with a set of conditions and rules for playing, I don’t think it’s time to tinker with the rules.” It’s not the way India wanted to make the final, but they deserve to be there as the only undefeated team that went through the group phase.
They’ve defeated Bangladesh, New Zealand and then Sri Lanka since launching their campaign by upsetting Australia.
While the whole team played well, teenage batting prodigy Shafali Verma excelled, seeing her rise to the top of this week’s ICC T20 batting rankings, aged just 16.
She is only the second Indian to cross number one after Mithali Raj, dragging veteran New Zealand’s Suzie Bates down to the second.
Before this year India, ranked four in the world, had made three semi-finals and lost each time, including against England at the last World Cup.
