By Asif Naveed
Web Desk; England secured a nail-biting four-run victory over India to seal their place in the semi-finals of the ICC Women’s World Cup. In a high-stakes match, India were left needing 66 runs off the final 66 balls but England’s bowlers staged a strong comeback to remain unbeaten in the tournament.
England skipper Heather Knight marked her 300th international appearance with a stunning knock of 109 runs off 91 balls, steering her team to a competitive 288-8.
The innings wasn’t without drama — England slumped from 249-3 to 257-6 in just 14 balls, losing Sophia Dunkley, Emma Lamb, and Alice Capsey cheaply, exposing the middle order once again.
Nat Sciver-Brunt was the pick of the bowlers with 2-47, while Linsey Smith contributed with 1-40, holding their nerve during India’s chase.
Australia vs India (Men’s ODI):
Australia’s stand-in skipper Mitchell Marsh continued his exceptional form, scoring an unbeaten 46, as Australia defeated India by seven wickets in the rain-affected first ODI at Perth Stadium on Sunday.
Rain interruptions reduced India’s innings to 26 overs, in which they stumbled to 136-9, setting a revised target of 131 for Australia. The hosts comfortably chased it down in 21.1 overs in front of a 42,000-plus crowd.
The match marked the return of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to ODI cricket after their retirement from other formats. However, both struggled against Australia’s pace attack: Rohit edged Josh Hazlewood for eight, while Kohli was dismissed for a duck off Mitchell Starc, caught brilliantly by Cooper Connolly.
Spinner Matthew Kuhnemann picked 2-26, while Nathan Ellis, Hazlewood and others kept the pressure on. India slipped to 37-3 before rain halted play for two hours. Despite some resistance from Axar Patel (31) and KL Rahul (38), the lower order failed to recover momentum.
Marsh launched the chase with three sixes, supported by Josh Philippe (37) and Matt Renshaw (21*), ensuring Australia’s smooth win. Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar took one wicket each.
The three-match series will now move to Adelaide on Thursday, with the final match in Sydney on Saturday.
