(File photo)
Australia beat India by 5 runs, and secure seventh Straight Women’s T20 World Cup Final.
In a nerve-wracking semi-final match held at Newlands, defending champions Australia advanced to their seventh consecutive Women’s T20 World Cup final with a narrow win over India. Despite the Indian team’s strong batting efforts and a counter-attacking partnership between skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (52) and Jemimah Rodrigues (43), Australia’s Beth Mooney (54 off 37) and Ashleigh Gardner (31 off 18) led their team to a challenging score of 172 for four.
India needed 39 runs from the last 30 balls with five wickets in hand, but the team fell short of the target by just five runs. Harmanpreet’s freak run out proved to be the turning point of the game. Australia’s skipper, Meg Lanning (49 not out off 34 balls), ensured the victory by collecting two sixes and a four in the final over bowled by Renuka Thakur.
India’s poor fielding and catching allowed Australia to post a competitive score, and their inconsistent bowling effort could not halt the Australian batters. Despite India’s defeat, Harmanpreet’s performance and her partnership with Jemimah offer hope for the future of Indian cricket. Meanwhile, Australia remains the team to beat in the T20 format, having reached the final in every edition of the tournament so far.
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