It is India and England, who ultimately make it through to the grand finale of the inaugural edition of the Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be played at the Senwes Park in Potchefstroom today.
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Team India, under Shafali Verma were in a spot of bother after having lost to Australia during their first match of the ‘Super Six’ stage. Winning their next match against Sri Lanka with a huge margin had became imperative to make it through to the semi-final, and the women did exactly that, by chasing the paltry target (60 runs) down more than 12 Overs to spare.
In the semis, it was all easy-peasy for the Indian women, as they defeated New Zealand by 8 wickets and 34 balls to spare to book the grand finale berth.
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England, on the other hand, looked down and out after they managed to register mere 99 runs on the board in their semi-final encounter against Australia. In what turned out to be a see-saw battle till the end of the Australian chase, the English side ultimately prevailed by 3 runs, restricting the Aussies to 96 in 18.4 Overs.
Come the final, apart from the bid to get hold of the prestigious title, there’s yet another mini battle for the tournament’s highest run-getter between the opener batters from both the sides. While India’s Shweta Sehrawat is presently at the top (292 runs), England skipper Grace Scrivens (289 runs) lags behind just by three runs.
Senwes Park pitch report U19 Women’s T20 World Cup final
The Senwes park, akin the two semi-finals, will also host the grand finale of the Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup today.
Spinners are likely to dominate yet again in the final today, as was the case during both the semi-final matches at this venue. Eyes will be on the leg-break bowlers from both the sides in India’s Parshavi Chopra and England’s Hannah Baker, both of who have scalped 9 wickets apiece across five innings.
The average first-innings score at this venue has been 136 runs, and the result might likely boil down to which team bats well against the spinners during the middle Overs.
The pacers are likely to get some assistance from the pitch with the new ball, but it would also provide the batters with the opportunity to trust the track’s even bounce and score some quick runs.