Commonwealth Games, INDW vs PAKW: Bismah elects to bat
India are set to face arch-rivals Pakistan in the fifth match (Group A) of the Women's T20 event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games (CWG) in Birmingham. The Women in Blue are coming off a defeat to Australia Women in the tournament opener. Pakistan too lost their sole match to Barbados Women. Besides, Pakistan captain Bismah Maroof has won the toss and elected to bat.
Timing, TV listing, and pitch report
The match is set to be played at the Edgbaston in Birmingham and is starting late because of a rain delay. As of now, the wicket here has assisted everyone in phases. The highest total in these matches is 167/2 (NZW vs RSAW). One can watch the match live on the Sony Ten Network and stream the same on the SonyLIV app (paid subscription).
Head-to-head record: IND 9-2 PAK
At present, India and Pakistan don't compete in bilateral cricket series due to political tensions. The women's sides from these nations have not played any bilateral T20I series as of now. The two teams have met on 11 occasions across multi-lateral tournaments. India have a win-loss record of 9-2 against Pakistan. They are unbeaten against Pakistan in the last four T20Is.
Cricket returns to CWG
Earlier this week, cricket returned to CWG for the first time in over two decades. Edgbaston in Birmingham is hosting the eight-team women's T20 tournament. Notably, cricket last featured in a multi-sporting tournament in 1998. A 'List A' men's tournament was held at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Malaysia. South Africa won the gold medal in the 50-over event in Kuala Lumpur.
A look at the two teams
India Women (Playing XI): Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Sabbhineni Meghana, Deepti Sharma, Radha Yadav, Sneh Rana, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh Pakistan Women (Playing XI): Iram Javed, Muneeba Ali (wk), Omaima Sohail, Bismah Maroof (c), Aliya Riaz, Ayesha Naseem, Kainat Imtiaz, Fatima Sana, Tuba Hassan, Diana Baig, Anam Amin
