Harmanpreet and team keeps alive India's semi-final hopes

DUBAI: India defeated Pakistan in the Women's Twenty20 World Cup by six wickets in the match held at the Dubai Cricket Stadium. India surpassed the target in 18.5 overs after restricting Pakistan to a paltry score of 105 in the earlier part of the game. Malayalee stars Asha Shobhana and Sajana Sajeev were in the playing eleven.

In their first group game, India lost to New Zealand by 58 runs. Score: Pakistan 105-8 (20) | India 106-4 (18.5). Chasing a target of 106 runs, India started batting carefully with an eye for strong partnerships. Despite the adept planning, Superstar Smriti Mandana failed to shine in the match. She returned to the pavilion after scoring just seven runs from six balls. Shafali Verma 32(35) and Jemimah Rodrigues 23(28) meanwhile took the game forward with a decisive partnership.

Captain Harmanpreet Kaur scored 29*(24) while Richa Ghosh was dismissed for a golden duck. When Harmanpreet returned injured, Malayali player Sajana Sajeevan entered the crease as a replacement. Arundhati Reddy took three wickets, Shreyanka Patil two wickets, while Asha Shobhana, Deepti Sharma and Renuka Singh took one wicket each.