On June 21, India suffered their first defeat of the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. Fielding lapses cost India as three catches were put down, two of them by Radha Yadav, a gun fielder in the side. As Radha had a forgettable outing, Marizanne Kapp scored an unbeaten 81 to help her side win by six wickets with five balls to spare. After the defeat, India’s out-of-favour veteran pacer Shikha Pandey spoke against online abuse players have been subjected to. Shikha has urged the fans to ‘not blur the line’ and stick to ‘fair and necessary’ constructive criticism.
“To all those going after the Indian players after today’s loss to South Africa- constructive criticism is fair and necessary but online abuse is not. The difference between the two is immense, and it’s important we don’t blur that line,” Shikha wrote on X.
Shikha went on to write that opinions of those doesn't matter who can't even get the names of the women's team right.
The fight for semifinal spots gets intense
Despite the defeat, Shikha has backed Harmanpreet Kaur-led India to make it to the semifinals. With two wins each from three games, India, Bangladesh and South Africa will be fighting for a semifinal spot. Currently, India have a better net run rate (NRR) than Bangladesh and South Africa. They will face Bangladesh in their next match on June 25 at Manchester's Emirates Old Trafford.
Areas of concern for India highlighted by South Africa defeat
India couldn't capitalise on a fiery start. In the middle overs, India couldn't accelerate which led to a score of 158/7. Yastika Bhatia hasn't been able to score quickly whereas Jemimah Rodrigues is yet to shine in the tournament. Harmanpreet couldn't find boundaries either and the finish needed from Richa Ghosh didn't happen.
An inexperienced bowling attack was not supported well by the fielders. Apart from Shree Charani, other bowlers struggled. Radha's two dropped catches cost India as Marizanne scored an unbeaten 81 in the run chase. As highlighted earlier as well, fielding is one department where India need to improve, especially with two must-win games coming up.
Change in team combination for Bangladesh game?
After Prema's underwhelming T20I debut where she conceded 21 runs from two overs, it will be interesting to see whether India will make changes to their side. Radha came on as a substitute fielder in the game. She may get a chance or India may boost their fast-bowling stocks by either picking Renuka Singh Thakur or Kranti Gaud.