India strolled to a comfortable six-wicket victory over West Indies to edge closer to the semi-finals of the Women’s T20 World Cup in Cape Town.
Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh added 72 for the fourth wicket as they reached their target of 119 with 11 balls to spare.
Ghosh finished unbeaten on 44 while captain Harmanpreet made a 42-ball 33.
The result sets up a top-of-the-table clash between England and India on Saturday to decide who tops group two.
Batting first, West Indies stumbled to 118-6 after Stafanie Taylor’s gritty 42 from 40 balls.
After losing star batter Hayley Matthews for two in the second over, Taylor and Shemaine Campbelle, who made 36, rebuilt the innings with a partnership of 73.
But the side’s batting struggles continued, as spinner Deepti Sharma took 3-15 and in the process became the first Indian bowler to take 100 T20 international wickets.
West Indies’ qualification hopes are not over, but they need to win their last two games and rely on other results to go their way.
But they were dealt a devastating blow when Taylor was taken from the field on a stretcher with an injury, having only returned to the side during their opening encounter with England after a lengthy spell out.
India’s fixture against England in Gqeberha on Saturday had been viewed as arguably the most significant match of the tournament before it even began.
With defending champions Australia likely to finish top of group one, a semi-final against them – the fate of whoever finishes second in group two – is the one teams would be desperate to avoid.
So for England and India, both with two wins from two going into their encounter, there is a lot at stake.
The pitches and conditions have been tricky for all teams to navigate, with spinners dominating slow and low wickets, but India have looked a comfortable batting side, successfully chasing 149 to beat Pakistan and reaching their target against West Indies with minimal drama.
In Cape Town, they appeared relaxed and full of confidence, perhaps buoyed by Monday’s historic Women’s Premier League auction that saw the likes of Smriti Mandhana, Sharma and Jemimah Rodrigues sold for life-changing sums of money.
India were also boosted by the return of Mandhana, the most expensive player who was sold for approximately £340,000, though the opener only made 10 after recovering from a hand injury.
India’s final encounter comes against Ireland while England play Pakistan, games which both teams will be expected to win
