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Unreliable Pakistan: How India Should Have Never Dependant On Them For T20 Women's WC Semi-Finale Place

India crashed out of the group stage in T20 WC [Source: @ICC/x.com] India crashed out of the group stage in T20 WC [Source: @ICC/x.com]

Team India's campaign at the Women's T20 World Cup has come to an end, as they shockingly crashed out of the group stage, producing a disappointing performance.

A lot was expected of them, especially on slow and sluggish UAE wickets, but to say that it was a disaster-class from the Harmanpreet Kaur led side won't be an understatement. The group featuring India had three Asian teams, and two from Oceania - Australia and New Zealand.

India's disasterclass at T20 Women's World Cup

Many expected the Asian sides to do well on friendly surfaces in UAE, but surprisingly, it was the teams from Oceania, who played breath-taking cricket and qualified for the semi-finals.

India started the tournament against New Zealand, and were the overwhelming favourites, however, disaster happened as the batters crumbled under pressure and the team lost by 58-runs. They won their next two matches against Pakistan and Sri Lanka and normalcy resumed.

However, to qualify for the semis, India needed to beat Australia, which obviously didn't happen as the Alyssa Healy-less side won a close-fought contest. Interestingly, despite the loss, India had a glimmer of hope of qualifying, but the responsibility lied on the shoulders of a struggling Pakistan side. 

If Pakistan would have defeated New Zealand by a close-margin, India's net run-rate would have been better than them, and the side would have qualified for the next round. However, that of-course didn't happen as well.

Were India wrong in pinning their semi-finale hopes on Pakistan?

Yes, they were. First and foremost, India should have played well right from the word go, and that would have allowed them to sneak into the next round. Against the two strongest teams of the group - Australia and New Zealand, the Harmanpret led side crumbled and lost the match, rather easily.

Plus, they had a chance to increase their net run-rate against Pakistan, but they didn't do that, instead, they took the game to the wires which affected their NRR.

Now coming to Pakistan, they were never the favourites to reach the semis, and it was evident through their performances in the warm-up matches. Pakistan were taken apart by Bangladesh women in the warm-up match before the T20 World Cup, and prior to that, Scotland shocked them and defeated a toothless Pakistan side to dent their confidence.

Against the White Ferns, Pakistan dropped 10 catches, which might be a record in itself. Plus, chasing a modest 111, they were bundled out for a paltry 56. India's inability to close out games at crucial junctures has been their biggest enemy in the ICC tournaments, and it came back to haunt them once again.