Under-pressure India face New Zealand in virtual quarter-final

One can well imagine the pressure Harmanpreet Kaur's players will feel on Thursday afternoon when they walk out to face New Zealand at the DY Patil Stadium. It is a virtual knockout in a home World Cup where a packed stadium will scrutinise every move. India face the heat after three straight losses where one more wrong step means staring at the exit.

- Sanjjeev K Samyal

India and New Zealand face off in what is seen as a virtual quarterfinal, an intense battle for the last semifinal spot in the ODI Women’s World Cup. Seven-time champions Australia, South Africa and four-time winners England have booked their last-four spots.

India will have to turn up for the high stakes game at the Navi Mumbai ground. The hosts are in a desperate situation after frittering away advantageous positions against South Africa, Australia and England for a series of defeats that has left them fourth on the table with four points. They are ahead of former champions New Zealand only on net run rate.

The positive though is that their big guns have started to fire. Stylish opening batter Smriti Mandhana has back-to-back fifties (80 & 88) after a tough start to the campaign. Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur has also shown signs of regaining form with a composed 70 against England before the run chase unravelled in Indore on Sunday. In the lower-order, Richa Ghosh has hit top gear, while Deepti Sharma has played a useful hand more than once to go with her effective spin bowling.

However, it doesn't augur well for any side which after five games into the tournament, that too at home, remains unsure about the best combination. Do they stick with six bowlers or return to five and get Jemimah Rodrigues back in for the crucial game?