ICC WOMEN’S WC
Match Today
SL v PAK | AT 3:00PM
Colombo, Oct 23: Sri Lanka’s faint hopes of making it to the semifinals of the Women’s ODI World Cup have officially come to an end after India’s emphatic win over New Zealand on Thursday sealed the remaining qualification spots. Their upcoming fixture against Pakistan on Friday, once seen as a must-win encounter, has now been reduced to a dead rubber between two Asian sides with contrasting fortunes.
The Chamari Athapaththu-led Sri Lankan team, currently placed sixth on the points table with four points, had been mathematically alive before India’s victory. However, with the co-hosts joining Australia, England, and South Africa in the last four, the island nation’s semifinal dreams have been dashed.
Despite that, Sri Lanka will still look to sign off their campaign on a high when they take on a struggling Pakistan outfit at the R. Premadasa Stadium. For Athapaththu and her side, it will be about salvaging pride, improving their net run rate, and gaining some much-needed confidence after a rain-marred tournament that saw two of their matches washed out.
For Pakistan, the campaign has been one to forget. The Fatima Sana-led side sits bottom of the table with just two points, both coming from abandoned matches. They remain winless in the tournament, plagued by poor form and a dismal net run rate of –2.651. (Agencies)
