India vs Australia Women’s World Cup 2025 Semifinal: All Eyes on Navi Mumbai Showdown

Hosts India will take on Australia this afternoon in a blockbuster semifinal clash of the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 at the DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai. The match is set to begin at 3:00 p.m. (IST).

Australia, unbeaten so far in the tournament, are chasing a record-extending eighth Women’s ODI World Cup title, while India will look to make home advantage count and lift their maiden World Cup trophy.

When the two sides met earlier in the group stage, the world’s top-ranked Australian team pulled off a record run chase to beat world No. 3 India by three wickets in a high-scoring thriller.

Injury Concerns for Both Teams

Australia captain Alyssa Healy, who scored a magnificent century in that earlier encounter at Visakhapatnam, remains doubtful for today’s semifinal due to a calf strain. Despite missing the last two matches, she is still Australia’s top scorer in the tournament with 294 runs from four games. Beth Mooney and Ashleigh Gardner have also been in fine form with the bat.

India, meanwhile, will be without opener Pratika Rawal, who injured her ankle while fielding against Bangladesh last week. The 25-year-old has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament. Rawal, the second-highest run-getter of the World Cup behind Smriti Mandhana, leaves a big void at the top of the order.

Shafali Verma has been named as Rawal’s replacement in the squad. India have several options — Amanjot Kaur, Harleen Deol, Uma Chetry, and Jemimah Rodrigues — to open alongside Mandhana.

Wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh, who missed the Bangladesh match due to a finger injury, also remains a doubtful starter for India.

Bowling Strengths

Australia boast two of the tournament’s top three wicket-takers — Annabel Sutherland (15 wickets) and Alana King (13 wickets). For India, Deepti Sharma, who shares the top spot with Sutherland, has been their standout performer with both bat and ball.

Head-to-Head Record

Australia dominate the overall Women’s ODI head-to-head against India, winning 49 of 60 matches, with India victorious on 11 occasions.

In World Cup encounters, the Aussies lead 10–3, including victory in the 2005 final. India’s most famous win came in the 2017 semifinal in Derby, when Harmanpreet Kaur’s unbeaten 171 powered them to a memorable 36-run triumph.

This will be the third World Cup semifinal meeting between the two teams — Australia won the first in Delhi (1997), and India claimed the second in 2017.

Squads

India: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Uma Chetry (wk), Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, Richa Ghosh (wk), Kranti Gaud, Amanjot Kaur, Radha Yadav, Sree Charani, Shafali Verma, Sneh Rana.

Australia: Alyssa Healy (captain/wk), Tahlia McGrath (vice-captain), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Heather Graham, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Sophie Molineux (wk), Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham.