CWG 2022: India women to take on Pakistan; probable lineup, pitch report

The Commonwealth Games 2022 will see the Indian women’s cricket team take on their arch-rivals, Pakistan, in a T20 clash at the iconic Edgebaston Cricket Ground. After suffering a defeat at the hands of Australia in what was the maiden women’s cricket match in the history of the Commonwealth Games, the Women in Blue will be eager to prove their naysayers wrong this time around.

In a similar vein to their Indian counterpart, the Pakistani women’s cricket team were also handed a defeat by Barbados, who won by 15 runs in their clash. Nida Dar’s formidable 31-ball 50 not out was not enough, with other Pakistani batters failing to prove their mettle in the encounter. 

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Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored a stunning 34-ball 52 in the match, will most likely lead the squad once again, looking to add to the nine wins in 11 matches India’s women’s cricket team boasts of against Pakistan in T20s.

Probable line-ups

India: Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Varma, Yastika Bhatia, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Harleen Deol, Radha Yadav, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh, Rajeshwari Gayakwad.

Pakistan: Iram Javed, Muniba Ali, Omaimah Sohail, Bismah Maroof (c), Nida Dar, Aliya Riaz, Ayesha Naseem, Fatima Sana, Tuba Hassan, Diana Baig, Anam Amin.

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Pitch report

Batting first at Edgebaston has always been a daunting affair, with the Indian women themselves losing to Australia in their first clash at CWG 2022 after Kaur won the toss and elected to bat first. Even in men’s Test matches, the average runs for a single wicket in the morning session of Day 1 since 2006 has been a mere 15.04 at Edgebaston. 

However, with Birmingham’s predicted weather for the day being sunny, spectators at the ground are expected to enjoy a gala game of cricket on Sunday. The match is set to commence at 3:30 PM IST.