Women's T20 WC, India vs Pakistan: Maroof elects to bat
India are set to kick-start their ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan. Both teams are seeking their maiden title in the competition. The Women in Blue were the runners-up of the previous WT20 WC in 2020, while Pakistan haven't reached the semi-finals yet. Pakistan captain Bismah Maroof has won the toss and elected to bat.
A look at the two teams
Pakistan Women (Playing XI): Javeria Khan, Muneeba Ali (wicket-keeper), Bismah Maroof (captain), Nida Dar, Sidra Ameen, Aliya Riaz, Ayesha Naseem, Fatima Sana, Aiman Anwer, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal. India Women (Playing XI): Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harleen Deol, Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Radha Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Thakur Singh.
Pitch report, timing, and broadcast details
The Boland Park in Paarl will host the Group B duel. Only four T20Is have been played at this venue with the chasing team winning twice. Batters have had a hard time playing here with the average first-innings score being just 120. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network (6:30 PM IST) and live-streamed on Disney+Hotstar (paid subscription).
Here's the head-to-head record
India have firmly dominated Pakistan in the WT20Is. The two sides have so far crossed swords in 13 games with India emerging winners on 10 occasions. Only three matches were clinched by Pakistan. In T20 WCs, the Women in Blue boast a 6-4 win-loss record against their arch-nemesis. India recorded a 13-run when these two sides last met in the format, in October 2022.
Smriti Mandhana to miss the clash
Indian opener Smriti Mandhana will miss the clash due to a finger injury. The onus of scoring runs will hence be on the likes of skipper Harmanpreet and Shafali Verma. Shikha Pandey and Renuka Singh will be the key bowlers.
Here are the key players
Harmanpreet's tally of 2,940 runs across 146 matches at 28.26 is the fifth-highest for any batter in WT20Is. Meanwhile, Harmanpreet's counterpart Maroof stands ninth on the same list with 2,560 runs in 29 games at 26.66. With 121 wickets in 126 games at 18.09, Nida Dar is the second-leading wicket-taker in WT20Is. For India, Deepti Sharma owns 96 wickets in 87 games at 19.03.
