Australia have officially qualified for a record ninth semi-final in Women's T20 World Cup after India fail to chase down 152 in 10.2 overs. Captained by Tahlia McGrath, the defending champions posted a competitive 151 in their stipulated 20 overs after opting to bat. With India needing to chase down the target only in 10.2 overs to beat Australia on net run-rate, the Women in Blue couldn't do it.
While Australia were made to work hard for their win over Sri Lanka, they were comfortably the better side when locked horns against New Zealand and Pakistan. Alyssa Healy and co. beat the White Ferns by a massive margin of 80 runs and followed it up with a nine-wicket victory over Pakistan.
Australia have notably not missed a semi-final yet.
"I am just really proud of the group" - Tahlia McGrath
Stand-in captain Tahlia McGrath lauded Australia's resilience despite India coming hard at them and losing their regular skipper. Speaking about the surface, McGrath felt the conditions became tough to bat in the second innings.
"We want to win every game we play. We knew it was going to be a really big challenge for us today. They came really hard at us. I am just really proud of the group. We have our nerve at the end there. Obviously, nobody likes injuries, especially to some of the big players. An injury to a captain is always tough. The ball was skidding on with a bit of pace. When you took the pace up, it was just holding and gripping a bit. We thought it slightly changed in the second inning."
