WHO: India vs Pakistan
Contents: ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025
When: Sunday, October 5th, 09:30 GMT
Location: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka
How to Follow: Al Jazeera Sport will perform a live buildup from 06:30 GMT prior to the stream of text commentary.
Cricket managed to take the back seat on another Sunday when India met Pakistan at the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 in Colombo amidst political tensions among its South Asian neighbours.
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The much-anticipated group stage fixture may be booked by questions surrounding handshakes between both sides when the captain meets in a pre-match coin toss, and when both teams meet at the end of a match traditionally returning to the field.
When the Indian and Pakistan men’s teams met at the Asian Cup 2025, the Indian team and their captain did not shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts on all three equipment in the tournament.
The Chief of the Board of Directors for the Management of Cricket in India (BCCI) has not also ruled out the “no handshake” policy of the Women’s World Cup fixture.
“I can’t guarantee you anything, whether there’s a handshake or not, or whether I’ll hold you,” BCCI’s Devajit Saikia told the BBC’s confused podcast.
“I can’t predict anything, but the relationship with that particular hostile country is the same. There hasn’t changed last week.”
“Focus on the game”
It may seem like cricket has been pushed into the background once again, but both teams overlook the controversial buildup and want to focus on the game instead.
“Obviously, we know what’s going on around us, but as the World Cup is an event that all players are waiting for, we try to keep our focus on the game,” Pakistan captain Fatimasana said on Saturday.
Pakistan said that when Pakistan said “focusing on the tournament and what we came here,” Pakistan said that when asked to comment on “outside noise,” Pakistan said that he was “comprehensively beaten by Bangladesh.
When India last played Pakistan in the Women’s World Cup, the players’ off-field interactions left an indelible mark in the game, earning widespread acclaim from fans.
In the 2022 tournament in New Zealand, Pakistan’s then captain Bismamaroof was surrounded by a group of Indian players wrapped in his six-month-old daughter Fatima.
Jokes were shared, selfies were filmed, and memories were made as players from rival countries who bonded outside the dressing room after the match.
Sana, who was part of the Pakistani team in 2022, has been asked for three years whether the players would miss out on spirit and friendship.
“We are trying to maintain a healthy relationship with all our teams,” Sana replied.
“What happened with Bisma’s daughter, when everyone enjoyed mixing together – as players, we all like those moments, but the main thing is to focus (in the game).”
When the same question was raised to Indian bowling coach Aavishankar Salvi, the journalists were informed that India would not answer it.
However, Salvi also said on Sunday that India, which defeated Sri Lanka with 59 runs in the opening game, will also “focus on cricket.”
#Slowback to this beautiful moment from the 2022 World Cup involving Bisma Malouf’s daughter and Indian girl
– Women’s Cricket (@imfemalecricket) April 25, 2024
“The world is watching”
“The World Cup is a long campaign and a lot of games come in our way, so we want girls to take it the same way they do it,” he said.
“When you’re in a big tournament, the only area of focus is cricket, and it’s good to have players in a good (head) space.”
The fixture is expected to bring out a huge audience, and organizers will expect a considerable crowd on the ground as well.
Sana, who led Pakistan in a match against India at the 2024 T20 World Cup, acknowledged that such factors are high pressure fixtures and what the whole world sees.
“There’s pressure, but the main thing is how to handle it. You’re focused on the game, you’re going to run your plans and get ready.”
What happened in the last Indian vs Pakistan women’s cricket match?
The team finally met at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 in Dubai. India won with six wickets.
When was Pakistan last defeated India in women’s cricket?
Pakistan defeated India only three times, but it was the final one on October 7th at the T20 Women’s Asian Cup 2022. Nidadar’s all-round performance sealed off his 13-run victory in Bangladesh.
Will rain fall in Colombo during the India vs Pakistan match?
Rain is expected early Sunday in the neighbourhood Kettarama, which houses R Premedasa Stadium in Sri Lanka’s capital.
The weather will remain cloudy all day, with a shower of light expected to return in the evening. This can lead to delays and confusion in play.
There was a lot of rain on Saturday before Sri Lanka’s match against Australia at the same venue. The sustained rain led to the game being cancelled without play.
India vs Pakistan: direct women’s ODI
India is leading their neighbors 11-0 in female ODIs. All India’s victory has a comfortable margin, including 107 wins at the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 in New Zealand.
Players to watch: India
Smriti Mandhana: Widely regarded as the best limited edition batter in women’s cricket today, Mandhana has wiped out most women’s ODI records in the past two years. She was a top ranked ODI batter in the distance and was the leading ranker of the format in 2024. The Indian vice captain won the 4th century in 2025. Deepti Sharma: All-around poses equal threats to the bat and the ball, and worked well against Pakistan in previous encounters. Sharma’s off-break bowling on his right-handed arm would be a major threat to Pakistani batsmen. She scored three wickets and scored 54 runs in India’s World Cup opening against Sri Lanka on Tuesday.
Watching Player: Pakistan
Sidra Amin: The veteran batsman recently became the top ODI century maker in her country with the sixth ton in the series against South Africa. She appears in key matches in the form of excellent run scoring and is considered the mainstay of Pakistan’s batting attack against India’s strong bowling lineup. Nashra Sandhu: The modest, slow, left-arm bowler has been Pakistan’s go-to spin option in recent years and is third on her country’s list of top ODI wicket takers. Sandhu won 16 wickets in Pakistan’s nine ODIs in 2025. This includes six wickets in the match against South Africa on September 22nd.
Form Guide: India
India took part in the World Cup with a home series defeat and an away series victory. They were tested by Sri Lanka in the opening game of the tournament, but recovered well to launch the World Cup campaign with victory.
The last 5 ODIs (latest result 1): wlwlwl
Form Guide: Pakistan
Pakistani form fell after five unbeaten runs at home in the World Cup qualifiers, beating Bangladesh, Thailand and the West Indies to book a place in the tournament. Sana’s team lost their home ODI series to South Africa and suffered a dramatic batting breakdown in the opening World Cup match against Bangladesh.
The last 5 ODIs (latest result 1): lwllw
Team News: India
India is expected to name the unchanged XI in the second match of the tournament.
Predicted XI: Pratika Rawal, Smriti Mandhana, Harleen Deol, Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (Wicketkeeper), Amanjot Kaur, Sneh Rana, Kranti Goud, Shree Charani.
Team News: Pakistan
Pakistan is likely to send the same XI that was defeated by Bangladesh, but there may be cases where Natalia Perveis will be replaced by inform all-rounder Aroob Shah.
Prediction XI: Mnebaari, Omaimasohail, Sidraamim, Ramienshamim, Aliyarais, Sidranawaz (Wicketkeeper), Fatimasana (Captain), Natalia Paabaiz, Dianabaig, Nashrasandu, Sadiaiqbal.
