U19 Womens T20 World Cup: India, Australia Secure Semi-Final Berths

India and Australia have joined South Africa in booking their spots in the semi-finals of the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, with one game still remaining, according to the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The trio have been the dominant teams in the tournament held in Malaysia, showcasing exceptional performances throughout.

With Sunday’s results, both India and Australia have secured their progression from the Super 6 stage, underlining their strength and consistency in the competition.

England are currently best placed to secure the fourth and final semi-final spot, and would do so if they win against New Zealand on Monday. Nigeria, the USA and New Zealand are all still in contention.

India won all three of their matches in Group, beating Sri Lanka, West Indies and hosts Malaysia to progress to the Super 6, where they continued their excellent form with Sunday’s big win over Bangladesh.

Opening batter Trisha Gongadi ended Sunday’s game as the tournament’s top run-scorer, hitting 120 across 89 balls faced in her four innings so far.

Left-arm spinner Vaishnavi Sharma has been a consistent threat with the ball, taking extraordinary combined figures of 9/23 across her 12 tournament overs to be tied as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker.

Australia dominated in Group D, overcoming Bangladesh, Scotland and Nepal before showing their class with a convincing win over West Indies in the Super 6.

Eleanor Larosa and Caoimhe Bray have led the way with the ball for the Aussies, taking seven wickets apiece, while the top order have been solid throughout the tournament so far.

Australia also came out on top in a final-over thriller against Bangladesh, edging past the latter by a two-wicket margin.

The Proteas started off their tournament in impressive fashion with victory over New Zealand and have been in dominant form since then, seeing off Samoa and Nigeria in Group C before hammering Ireland in their first Super 6 game.

Captain and all-rounder Kayla Reyneke has been outstanding with the ball, taking nine wickets in her four matches to-date, while keeper Karabo Meso has shown a penchant for destructive middle-order hitting, slamming her runs at a tournament-leading strike rate of 194.11.