In the history of women’s ODIs, Pakistan have faced India 11 times over the years and have never managed to win. Four of those meetings have come at the ICC Women’s World Cup. In 2017, India won by 95 runs in Derby despite scoring just 169 in 50 overs. In 2022, Pakistan had India in trouble at 114/6 before a 122-run stand from Pooja Vastrakar and Sneh Rana rescued Mithali Raj’s side, who eventually won by 107 runs. In Bowral at the 2009 edition, Pakistan were bundled out for 57 in 29 overs, which India chased down with 10 wickets to spare in just 10 overs. In 2013, Pakistan’s 192/7 was chased down with six wickets and four overs to spare, riding on Mithali’s unbeaten 103. Those numbers are enough to illustrate how one-sided this rivalry has been in the past.
But Pakistan captain Fatima Sana on Saturday refused to read too much into the history of the rivalry. “Whatever records exist between India and Pakistan are meant to be broken,” the allrounder said in the press conference. ‘It’s not that Pakistan will never win against them. We believe in playing good cricket no matter who the opponent is. So we won’t think about past history; we’ll focus only on the day we play.”
“Firstly if you see, we are like a family – we 20–22 people are like one family, so we are not at all focused on what’s going on outside. Obviously, we know what’s happening around us, but we try to stay focused only on the game, because the World Cup is an event every player waits for. We will try to keep our focus on the tournament and on what we have come here for.”
“Of course, it’s a pressure match because of the big crowd. We know that when it’s India vs Pakistan, the whole world is watching, and the fans are watching too. So yes, there is pressure, but the main thing is how we handle it. We’ll try to focus on our game, execute our plans, and play the way we’ve prepared,” she added.
Pakistan, however, have to pick themselves up from a poor performance against Bangladesh in their tournament opener, where they were bundled out for just 129 at the R Premadasa Stadium. “You can’t judge your team based on one match. The way we played in the qualifiers and other matches, we performed very well as a team. So we can’t think that one bad game defines us. Personally, I feel the Pakistan team has the ability to play well and win against any big team. So we shouldn’t judge the team based on one match. The team’s momentum and morale are high right now, and we just want to tell the fans — don’t judge us on one performance. Support us, and we’ll try to perform our best,” Fatima said.
At 23, leadership responsibilities have been thrust early on Fatima, but the youngster said she is leaning on the experience of the senior teammates. “Actually, their support is very important to me because they always stand by me. They know I have room to make mistakes, and if I do, they help me. Seniors like Sidra (Amin), Aliyah (Riyaz), and even Diana (Baig) always make sure the team stays united. If someone makes a mistake, someone else immediately covers it up. The way our team is right now, and the unity we have – obviously as a young captain it’s challenging, but with their support, I don’t feel it much.”
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