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India will kick off their 2023 ICC Women's T20 World Cup against arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday,12 February, in Cape Town, with the hopes of ending their final jinx and winning an ICC trophy. The Women in Blue reached the final of the last edition in 2020 but were beaten by Australia, who also defeated them in the final of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
However, former men's team head coach Ravi Shastri is confident that India can turn around their form in finals and even go on to win the trophy this time around, emulating the men's team that won the historic 1983 ODI World Cup and the effect it had on the cricketing world in India.
"I know what happened in '83, when we won the World Cup, it opened up a Pandora's Box," Shastri said in the latest episode of ICC review. "The whole look at the game changed, you know, the way players were perceived, the way the game was perceived, the way people wanted. To pack the system, the way the monetisation of the sport changed overnight," he added.
Taking the example of India's brilliant performance in the 2023 ICC U-19 Women's World Cup, Shastri said, "I see that happening with the women's cricket. Now, under-19 is just a step. It was fabulous to see the way the young girls played, and won. And, especially the final, to beat a team like England, bowl them out for 68 and then do the job was an outstanding achievement and that spurred a lot of young cricketers to take the sport."
"I've always said the biggest thing that's going to happen in women's cricket, and the women's team is (not) that far away," the former Indian all-rounder said.
"They've threatened, they've reached finals, they've lost some close games, but they're there," the confident cricket pundit added.
India have been placed in Group 2 along with England, West Indies, Pakistan and Ireland while defending champions Australia are placed in Group 1 alongside New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The top two teams in each group will qualify for the semi-finals.
