Hindustan Times ST (Jaipur)

Buoyant India aim for semi-final berth

Standings

- Press Trust of India sportsdesk@hindustant­imes.com (The writer is a senior cricket analyst. Views are personal)

Eyeing a semi-finals berth, overwhelmi­ng favourites India will have to guard against complacenc­y when they play Ireland in their third Group B match of the ICC Women’s World T20 here on Thursday.

India are on a roll, having convincing­ly won their first two matches, including against archrivals Pakistan two days ago.

Skipper Harmanpree­t Kaur declared open the tournament with her blazing hundred against New Zealand at the Providence, the same venue where India will face Ireland.

Ireland, on the other hand, have lost to both Australia and Pakistan.

India will enter the game against the Irish as overwhelmi­ng favourites but Kaur is aware that her team cannot afford to take things for granted in this mega-event.

Ireland cricket is known for its fighting abilities and taking them lightly will not be the way to go for India, with qualificat­ion to the last-four knocking on their doors.

Having eased past Pakistan a couple of days after the big win against the New Zealanders, India will neverthele­ss fancy their chances at the Providence.

If Kaur was the star of the opening win, the team’s most experience­d campaigner, Mithali Raj, showed the way in the sevenwicke­t win over Pakistan.

While Jemimah Rodrigues started her T20 career with a fine half-century, the likes of Smriti Mandhana and Veda Krishnamur­thy will look to score some runs against Ireland.

Off-break bowler Dyalan Hemalatha and leg-spinner Poonam Yadav shone with 10 wickets among them so far, and the seamers too will look to get going.

GUYANA:

Group A

Team England Windies South Africa Sri Lanka Bangladesh Matches 2 1 1 2 2 Won 1 1 1 0 0 Lost 0 0 0 1 2 N/R 1 0 0 1 0 Net RR 2.799 3.000 0.563 -0.563 -2.735 Points

Group B

Team Matches Won Lost N/R Net RR Points

 ?? GETTY IMAGES ?? After beating New Zealand and Pakistan, Harmanpree­t Kaurled India will look to keep their winning record intact against Ireland in the Women’s World T20 match in Guyana on Thursday.
GETTY IMAGES After beating New Zealand and Pakistan, Harmanpree­t Kaurled India will look to keep their winning record intact against Ireland in the Women’s World T20 match in Guyana on Thursday.

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