India out of Women’s T20 World Cup

Australia ended India’s Women’s T20 World Cup campaign with a resounding six-wicket win on Sunday, raising fresh questions over Harmanpreet Kaur’s future as India’s T20 captain. Chasing 171, the six-time champions achieved the target in 19 overs thanks to a match-winning 100-run partnership between Ellyse Perry and Ashley Gardner.India put Australia under pressure early on by dismissing Phoebe Litchfield, Georgia Voll and Beth Mooney cheaply and restricted them to 68/3. However, clinical batting displays from the experienced Perry (56 off 38 balls) and hard-hitting Gardner (53 not out off 29 balls) turned the game around.Perry relied on timing and placement to hit eight fours during his innings, while Gardner attacked the Indian spinners with powerful hitting. By the time Perry was dismissed, Australia were firmly in control and eventually booked a place in the semi-finals with a perfect record in Group 1.Earlier, India scored 170/4, which looked competitive only because of captain Harmanpreet Kaur’s explosive innings of 56 runs off 27 balls. Openers Smriti Mandhana (38) and Shafali Verma (34) gave India a steady start with a 66-run partnership, but the scoring rate was below expectations.Shafali was out trying to accelerate, while Mandhana was run out after a scuffle with Jemimah Rodrigues. Jemimah scored 34 runs from 28 balls but struggled to maintain her rhythm and was eventually retired before the final over.Harmanpreet changed the pace towards the end of the innings, hitting three consecutive sixes off Australian captain Sophie Molineux in the final over, helping India score 23 runs in the last six balls. However, Perry and Gardner’s partnership proved too strong as Australia sealed victory and South Africa joined them in the semi-finals.