WT20WC 2024 State of Play: India left needing a big favour from Pakistan

India’s narrow loss to Australia means that the defending champions are the first team to have officially qualified for the knockout stages of the tournament. And that result also leaves Harmanpreet Kaur’s side needing a helping hand from Pakistan if they are to progress from Group A.

Earlier on Sunday, England’s shower of power against Scotland set up a qualification showdown against West Indies. Here’s how the two groups are shaping up, with two huge matches still to come.

Group A

Australia (8 points | +2.223 NRR) - Qualified

Australia qualified for the semi-finals with four straight wins in Group A, wrapping up their place in Sunday’s win over India.

The injuries to captain Alyssa Healy and fast bowler Tayla Vlaeminck have been the only sour notes in an otherwise impressive campaign. Vlaeminck has been ruled out of the remainder of the tournament, but Australia are still hopeful that Healy will recover in time to feature in the knockouts.

India (4 points | +0.322 NRR)

Defeats to New Zealand and Australia mean that India face a nervous wait to see if their tournament will continue into the final week.

Harmanpreet Kaur’s side finished off their group fixtures with the narrow loss to Australia on Sunday, meaning that their qualification hopes now rest on net run rate and Pakistan.

Should Pakistan beat New Zealand on Monday, then India should qualify, barring an unlikely event where the margin of victory is significantly big enough to see Pakistan make a jump above their neighbours on NRR.

WATCH: The dramatic final over as Australia beat India | WT20WC 2024

New Zealand (4 points | +0.282 NRR)

The equation for the White Ferns is simple: beat Pakistan and they will join Australia in the knockout stages.

Pakistan (2 points | -0.488 NRR)

Pakistan’s opening-day win over Sri Lanka blew this group wide open, but their tournament has struggled to live up to those heady heights since.

It is unlikely but still mathematically possible that they can qualify, but to so they must beat New Zealand in their final group game by enough of a margin to end the group with a higher net run rate than any of the teams tied on four points.

Sri Lanka (0 points | -2.173 NRR) – Eliminated

Sri Lanka were one of the form teams coming into this tournament and had enjoyed victories against a host of higher-ranked nations in the last 18 months.

And so the failure to compete in Group A will be hugely frustrating for Chamari Athapaththu and her side.

Sri Lanka are the first team in the tournament to play all four of their matches, and have lost all four to end the World Cup with plenty of regrets.

Remaining fixtures in Group A

Pakistan v New Zealand – Monday 14 October (18:00 local time), Dubai International Cricket Stadium

Group B

England (6 points | +1.716 NRR)

England are in a terrific position in Group B, having followed up their opening two wins with a real show of power against West Indies in Sharjah.

The margin of that victory has given their net run rate a massive boost, meaning that there is a mathematical possibility that even a loss to West Indies may not be terminal, depending on the NRR impact of that defeat.

Beat West Indies and England will go through.

South Africa (6 points | +1.382)

South Africa’s job is done, and now they must sit back and wait to see if they are one of the two qualifiers for the semi-finals.

The margin of the crushing win over Scotland gave them a huge boost in NRR terms, but they still aren’t mathematically safe of being denied a top two spot.

Should England lose to West Indies but by a narrow-enough margin not to damage their own net run rate, then it is possible that NRR could deny the Proteas.

If England beat the West Indies on Tuesday to top the group then South Africa will also qualify.

West Indies (4 points | +1.708 NRR)

The West Indies are a dangerous proposition when they click with the bat, and have the top-order power to take down the best in the world.

Defeat to South Africa in their opening match was a huge setback for their qualification hopes, and yet the power game of Hayley Matthews’ side has seen them blast back into contention with two mammoth wins over Scotland and Bangladesh.

West Indies still have a significantly better run rate than South Africa, and so the equation for West Indies now is relatively simple – they must beat England on Tuesday.

Bangladesh (2 points | -0.844 NRR) – Eliminated

Bangladesh ended a decade-long wait for a win at an ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the tournament opener against Scotland.

But that result feels a long time ago, with three straight losses proving terminal to the Tigresses hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals.

The loss to South Africa on Saturday sealed Bangladesh’s fate as their campaign ended at the group stage once again.

Scotland (0 points | -3.129 NRR) – Eliminated

Scotland were their first-ever appearance at an ICC Women’s T20 World Cup and showed flashes of quality in their four defeats.

Remaining fixtures in Group B

England v West Indies – Tuesday 15 October (18:00 local time), Dubai International Cricket Stadium

All matches at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024 will be held in the two host cities of Dubai and Sharjah.

Fans can purchase tickets online or directly at the stadiums, for more information on where to buy click here.