Arch rivals India-Pakistan come face to face
Match number 6 of the 13th edition of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup will be played between arch rivals India and Pakistan on Sunday at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. While the world number three ODI team, India made a positive start to their World Cup campaign by beating Sri Lanka by 59 runs, Pakistan suffered a crushing seven-wicket loss at the hands of Bangladesh, after being bowled out for a paltry 129.
It will be an exciting contest between the two teams, provided the rain gods, who had the final say yesterday by washing out the match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Colombo, are kind enough to allow the riveting cricketing action.
Head-to-Head
India and Pakistan have played 11 ODIs against each other, of which Pakistan has won none and Australia has won all. At the World Cups, India leads the head-to-head battle 4-0.
Squads
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Uma Chetry, Renuka Singh Thakur, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Sree Charani, Radha Yadav, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud.
Pakistan: Fatima Sana (c), Muneeba Ali Siddiqui (vc), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Eyman Fatima, Nashra Sundhu, Natalia Parvaiz, Omaima Sohail, Rameen Shamim, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Shawaal Zulfiqar, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz, Syeda Aroob Shah
Players to watch out
Deepti Sharma: The Indian all-rounder impressed with bat and ball in her previous match against Sri Lanka. The left-handed batter scored 53 runs from as many balls under pressure and then delivered the goods with the ball picking three wickets for 54 runs in 10 overs, which included one maiden.
Smriti Mandhana: The Indian vice-captain, who has more than 900 ODI runs in this calendar year could not get off to a start as she was out cheaply for eight against Sri Lanka in her last outing. However, India will want the opening batter to find her rhythm and lay a solid foundation going ahead into this competition.
Fatima Sana: The captain of Pakistan was arguably the only silver lining in the dark cloud when the team went down to Bangladesh. She scored 22 runs from 33 balls, including three fours. With the ball, she started the proceeding and scalped one wicket.
Sidra Amin: The right-handed top-order batter, who has the most ODI runs for Pakistan in this team, was dismissed for a golden duck against Bangladesh. However, she would want to erase that memory and start afresh as she will be the key to Pakistan’s success with the bat in this tournament.
Match details
Date: October 5, 2025
Time: 3:00 PM
Venue: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Live streaming: Star Sports Network, Disney + Hotstar