One final and four group stage exits: How India fared in the Women’s T20 World Cup
Photo credit: X/@BCCIWomen Well-balanced India will rely on openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma to ensure a strong start against Pakistan when they begin their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup campaign on Sunday.Harmanpreet Kaur-led India are aiming to add a second global title after winning the Women’s ODI World Cup last year. The head-to-head record is clearly in India’s favour, with India leading Pakistan 13-3 in women’s T20Is.The two teams last met in the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup in Dubai, where India secured a six-wicket victory.Despite never winning the Women’s World T20 Cup, India have been among the most consistent teams in the tournament’s history, reaching the knockout stages on numerous occasions.
India’s performance in editions of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup (2009–2024)
Here’s a look at India’s performance in each edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2009 in EnglandUnder Jhulan Goswami, India’s campaign began with a 10-wicket defeat to England at Taunton. They bounced back to beat Pakistan by five wickets in a 76-run chase, with Priyanka Roy taking 5/16 in 3.5 overs.The win over Sri Lanka helped India reach the semi-finals. However, New Zealand defeated them by 52 runs at Trent Bridge to end their campaign.England won the tournament, beating New Zealand by six wickets in the final.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2010 in West IndiesIndia started with a 10-run defeat of New Zealand after managing 129/8 at Warner Park in Basseterre, St Kitts.They recovered with a nine-wicket victory over Pakistan in a chase of 106, with Punam Raut scoring an unbeaten 54. Another win over Sri Lanka followed, with Sulakshana Naik and Mithali Raj scoring fifties.India reached the semi-finals but lost to Australia by seven wickets at Gros Islet in St Lucia.Australia won the 2010 World Cup, defeating New Zealand by three runs in the final.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2012 in Sri LankaMithali Raj took over the captaincy for the tournament in Sri Lanka. India began with an eight-wicket defeat of defending champions Australia in Galle.They then lost to England by nine wickets and lost one run against Pakistan chasing 99. Their only win came against hosts Sri Lanka when they chased down 102 in 14.4 overs.Australia retained the title by defeating England by four runs in the final.
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ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2014 in BangladeshIndia entered the tournament under pressure after their 2012 campaign.They lost their opening match against Sri Lanka by 22 runs in Sylhet and then suffered another defeat against England.India recorded a 79-run win over hosts Bangladesh, with Harmanpreet Kaur scoring 77. This was followed by wins over the West Indies and Pakistan, including a successful defense of 106 against Pakistan.However, India were still looking for consistent success against teams from South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia. India’s campaign ended in the group stage.Australia won the title again when they defeated England by six wickets in Mirpur.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2016 in IndiaMithali Raj continued as captain when India hosted the tournament.India started with a win over Bangladesh at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. However, they lost to Pakistan by DLS method in Delhi.England beat India by two wickets in a low-scoring contest and the West Indies also beat them in Mohali. India’s campaign ended in the group stage.West Indies won the tournament, defeating Australia by eight wickets in the final at Eden Gardens.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2018 in West IndiesHarmanpreet Kaur took over as captain and made an immediate impact as she scored 103 off 51 balls against New Zealand at the Providence Stadium in Guyana. It was India’s first century in the Women’s T20 World Cup.India then defeated Pakistan and Ireland to qualify for the semi-finals. They also beat three-time champions Australia by 48 runs to finish the group stage unbeaten.However, England stopped India in the semi-finals in Antigua.Australia later beat England by eight wickets in the final.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 in AustraliaIndia started the tournament with a 17-run defeat to Australia but recovered with wins over Bangladesh, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.An abandoned semi-final against England helped India qualify for their first Women’s T20 World Cup final.In front of over 86,000 spectators at the MCG, India lost the final to Australia by 85 runs as Australia won their fifth title.T20 Women’s World Cup 2023 in South AfricaIndia started with a seven-wicket win over Pakistan at Newlands, where Jemimah Rodrigues scored an unbeaten 53 off 38 balls.They followed it up with a six-wicket win over West Indies, with Deepti Sharma taking 3/15. England then handed India an 11-run defeat.India later beat Ireland by five runs via the DLS method to reach the semi-finals.Against Australia, Harmanpreet Kaur scored 52 but her dismissal proved costly as India lost by five runs.Australia won their sixth title by beating South Africa by 19 runs in Cape Town.ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 in United Arab Emirates (UAE)After two successful campaigns in the Women’s T20 World Cup and the growth of the Women’s Premier League, expectations were high for India in 2024.However, they started with a 58-run defeat of New Zealand in Dubai after being bowled out for 102.India recovered with wins over Pakistan and Sri Lanka but failed to reach the semi-finals after losing to Australia in Sharjah. Chasing 152, India fell short by nine runs.New Zealand won their maiden Women’s T20 World Cup title, defeating South Africa by 32 runs in the final in Dubai.Performance in individual years
- 2009 (England): Semi-finalists
- 2010 (West Indies): Semi-finalists
- 2012 (Sri Lanka): Group stage
- 2014 (Bangladesh): Group stage
- 2016 (India): Group Stage
- 2018 (West Indies): Semi-finalists
- 2020 (Australia): runner-up (lost to Australia in final)
- 2023 (South Africa): Semi-finalists
- 2024 (UAE): Group stage