India faced South Africa in their third Group A match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 on Sunday (June 21) and suffered a six-wicket defeat. The Women in Blue failed to defend a total of 158 runs at Old Trafford in Manchester despite impressive bowling performances from Shafali Verma and Shree Charani. South Africa rode on all-rounder Marizanne Kapp’s unbeaten 81 off 45 balls at No. 4 to chase down the 159-run target in 19.1 overs with only four wickets down.
The defeat in Manchester has dented India’s chances of qualifying for the semifinals of the ongoing tournament. Although India are currently second in the Group A standings, they must win both of their remaining group-stage matches to strengthen their hopes of securing a top-two finish
and a place in the semifinals.
According to the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 format, the top two teams from each group will qualify for the semifinals.
India will face Bangladesh in their fourth Group A match of the tournament on Thursday (June 25) at Old Trafford before taking on Australia at Lord’s on Sunday (June 28).
If India lose even one of their remaining two matches and both South Africa and Australia win all of their remaining fixtures, India will be unable to finish in the top two and will miss out on a place in the semifinals.
India’s best chance of qualifying for the semifinals is to register convincing wins in both of their remaining matches and hope that South Africa drop at least one point in their remaining games. In that scenario, India would be guaranteed a top-two finish and a place in the semifinals.
India reached the semifinals of the Women’s T20 World Cup in 2018 and 2023 and advanced to the final in 2020, but failed to qualify for the semifinals in 2024.
As things stand in Group A, Australia lead the table with six points from three matches, having won all of their games so far. South Africa, India and Bangladesh have four points each from three matches, while Pakistan and the Netherlands have lost all three of their matches.
