South Africa and Pakistan both lost their openers at the Women’s T20 World Cup. At Edgbaston on Wednesday, the side that loses again will see its semi-final hopes all but vanish.
Two teams walked away from their opening games at the Women’s T20 World Cup with the same problem, and on Wednesday night at Edgbaston they meet to fix it. South Africa and Pakistan both lost their first matches by almost identical margins, and the loser of this Group 1 clash will find the road to the semi-finals turning very steep, very quickly.
South Africa were beaten by 65 runs by six-time champions Australia, undone by a Phoebe Litchfield blitz and a smart spell of spin. Pakistan suffered a near carbon-copy defeat the following day, going down to India by 64 runs after Smriti Mandhana’s half-century and Deepti Sharma’s five-wicket haul. Neither result was a surprise on paper. Both still sting.
South Africa carry the form and the history
For all that the Proteas were outplayed by Australia, they remain the stronger side here and have the better of the head-to-head record between the two teams. Laura Wolvaardt’s group reached the final of the last two editions of this tournament, and the spine that took them there is still in place. Marizanne Kapp gives them control with bat and ball, while the return of Shabnim Ismail adds a familiar edge to the attack.
Ismail’s comeback is one of the stories of South Africa’s campaign. The 37-year-old reversed her international retirement to play this tournament, and she arrives as the country’s leading wicket-taker in women’s T20 internationals, with 123 in 113 matches. Pace has rarely been Pakistan’s favourite thing to face, and Ismail at full tilt under the Birmingham lights is exactly the sort of test that can decide a tight game.
Pakistan need their batting to stand up
Fatima Sana’s side will know their problem from the India game was runs, not effort. They were always chasing the contest once their top order fell away, and against another disciplined attack they cannot afford the same slow start. Gull Feroza and Sadaf Shamas, who scored hundreds in the recent ODI series against Zimbabwe, carry much of the responsibility at the top.
Where Pakistan can hurt South Africa is with spin. Sadia Iqbal, Nashra Sandhu and Tuba Hassan give Fatima a varied slow-bowling group, and English pitches in June can offer just enough grip to make life awkward for stroke-players. If Pakistan can drag the run rate down through the middle overs, the pressure they could not apply against India suddenly becomes possible.
A near must-win for both
Group 1 is unforgiving. With Australia and India both starting strongly, two defeats this early would leave either South Africa or Pakistan needing other results to fall their way just to stay alive. That is the weight sitting on a fixture that, in isolation, looks like a routine mid-table meeting.
The match starts at 11pm IST. South Africa go in as favourites, but a Pakistan side stung by the manner of their opening loss has every reason to come out swinging. Whoever blinks first may find their tournament unravelling before it has properly begun.
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