The Indian women's cricket team will look to end a 47-year wait for its maiden ICC title when it takes the field at the ODI World Cup starting with a clash against Sri Lanka.
Australia expecting tough contest, under no illusions given India's depth of batting: Nitschke
India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur rued a stunning lower-order collapse as world champions Australia chased down a record 331 to seal a three-wicket win in the Women's World Cup, Visakhapatnam, on Sunday.
Both teams began their World Cup campaigns in contrasting fashion. Hosts India defeated Sri Lanka by 59 runs, while Pakistan, collapsed against Bangladesh, losing by seven wickets in a match where they struggled against both pace and spin.
Team has shown a lot of character, and we are facing Australia with a positive mindset: Sneh Rana
Harmanpreet Kaur's side would become the fourth team to book the semifinal berth if they get the better of the White Ferns here on the familiar mat of the DY Patil Stadium.
Amol Muzumdar never experienced the highs of an India cricketer but now he is a World Cup winning head coach -- only the third in the history of Indian cricket after Gary Kirsten and Rahul Dravid.
Deepti Sharma and Shafali Verma's superb all-round showing powered India to a historic first-ever Women's ODI World Cup title after they outclassed South Africa by 52 runs in the final.
India have a mounting worry in the lack of runs so far from talismanic Smriti Mandhana, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and the energetic Jemimah Rodrigues.
India recovered to 43/1 in 10 overs when the players were forced off the field in Guwahati.
India batter Pratika Rawal on Friday clarified that her shoulder contact with England cricketers during the first Women's ODI was "not intentional" after she was fined and handed one demerit point by the ICC.
Harmanpreet was quick to highlight fielding as the area that India needs to address quickly before facing South Africa and Australia on Thursday and Sunday, respectively.
India will search for a spark of magic reminiscent of skipper Harmanpreet Kaur's legendary knock eight years ago as they take on the mighty Australia in the World Cup semi-final on Thursday.
'We'll sit down and review -- see what went well, where we can improve, and how we can keep learning every day. There'll be a meeting for that. One game won't change our mindset.'
England edged India by just four runs in a nerve-wracking finish to storm into the Women's World Cup semi-finals on Sunday night in Indore.
India overpowered New Zealand by 53 runs via the Duckworth-Lewis method to seal their place in the semi-finals of the Women's ODI World Cup.
We need to back ourselves to keep Smriti Mandhana quiet: SA's De Klerk
'I think we have got a very settled batting lineup. Would not like to shuffle it around too much but when the need arises, you know we are flexible about it.'
'This Indian team is eager to thrive in the challenging conditions and ready to write a glorious chapter in the rich history of Indian cricket, says India captain Harmanpreet Kaur.
Scary for opponents to know that we did not have a perfect match, but still winning: Rodrigues
Alyssa Healy and other Aussie batters took the attack to India's pacers -- Kranti Gaud and Amanjot Kaur -- exposing the imprudence of their five-bowler strategy.
For spin great Neetu David it was a culmination of a lifelong dream -- to see the India women's team finally end their wait for a World title.
India defeated Pakistan by 88 runs in their Women's World Cup match in Colombo on Sunday.
Earlier, after incessant rain interrupted the exciting contest, South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt won the toss and opted to field against the hosts India.
The clash was a record-breaking one. Right from individual pieces of glory to team milestones, India opener Smriti Mandhana's records to Australia once again re-writing history books to justify the seven titles in their trophy cabinet, this match had it all.
Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur became the first visiting batter to score three Women's ODI centuries in England.
The Harmanpreet Kaur-led India will be playing an ODI World Cup final for the third time, having finished runners-up in 2005 and 2017 to Australia and England, respectively. This will be South Africa's maiden appearance in the final.
Kanika Ahuja, who plays for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Women's Premier League and also made her T20I debut for India earlier this year, is among the 15 women's players from India.
Smriti Mandhana's second-fastest hundred in women's ODIs went in vain as India's quest for a world-record chase in the series-deciding third game against Australia ended in a 43-run defeat, in New Delhi on Saturday.
India's recent run of victories has bolstered confidence but the women's selection panel, headed by Neetu David, will face some tricky questions on the inclusion of Shafali Verma and pacer Renuka Thakur when it meets in Mumbai on Tuesday to pick the squad for the ODI World Cup.
Shafali returns to T20 side for England tour, fit-again Yastika also comes back
India's women's team will hope to produce a strong all-round effort against a tricky Sri Lanka and win the ODI tri-series final in Colombo on Sunday.
Smriti Mandhana smashed the second-fastest ODI century by an Indian woman as the hosts handed Australia their heaviest defeat -- a 102-run thrashing -- in the second ODI.
A clinical India outclassed Sri Lanka by nine wickets in the rain-hit opening ODI of the women's tri-nation series in Colombo, on Sunday.
England beat India by eight wickets in rain-affected 2nd women''s ODI to level series 1-1
An unbeaten half-century by Deepti Sharma guided India to a four-wicket win over England in the first Women's ODI in Southampton on Wednesday.
A superb 84-ball 102 from skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and a splendid 6-52 from young pacer Kranti Goud helped India Women steer to a sensational 13-run win in the final ODI against England to clinch the three-match series 2-1 at Chester-le-Street, Durham, on Tuesday.
India defeated Ireland by six wickets in the first women's ODI to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series in Rajkot on Friday.
India, having secured two convincing victories, will be looking to complete a clean sweep of the women's ODI series against Ireland in the third and final match. The Indian team is brimming with confidence after a series of impressive batting performances, particularly from Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana, who have formed a formidable opening partnership. Despite their strong batting, India's bowling has shown some vulnerabilities, allowing Ireland to score a respectable 254/7 in the previous match. The absence of key players like Shafali Verma and Harmanpreet Kaur has given opportunities for emerging players to shine. The series has highlighted the impressive performance of Pratika Rawal, who has made the most of her chances. The Irish team has been led by the strong performances of Gaby Lewis, Christina Coulter-Reilly, and Leah Paul, but their fielding has been a concern. The match is scheduled to begin at 11 am in Rajkot.
Nilakshika Silva's blistering 33-ball 56 powered Sri Lanka to a thrilling three-wicket victory over India in the women's Tri-series, ending a seven-year losing streak against their rivals.
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