Who will reach the semi-finals from Group-2 will now be decided on the last day of the Super-12 round i.e. on November 6, in which the last 3 matches of this group will be played.
Image Credit source: TV9 Graphics
There are only matches left in the Super-12 round of the T20 World Cup 2022, but so far none of the four semi-finalists of the tournament has been decided. Especially in Group-2, Pakistan, which is on the verge of being eliminated from the tournament, made a strong comeback and registered two consecutive victories and now it has reached the position of claiming its claim till the last match. The huge victory over South Africa has raised Pakistan’s hopes further. At the same time, victory has become very important for India and South Africa in their last matches.
Let’s talk about points first. In Sydney on Thursday, 3 November, Pakistan defeated South Africa by a huge margin of 33 runs (Duckworth-Lewis rule) in a rain-affected match. This victory not only gave 2 important points to Pakistan, but also gave a tremendous jump to its net run rate. Pakistan now has 4 points from 4 matches and its net run rate is 1.117. This is what is keeping Pakistan’s hopes alive.
South Africa must win
In such a situation, it is important to know what are the equations for reaching the semi-finals? Which team needs to do the least in their last match? The last 3 matches of this group will be played on 6th November. The first match in this will be between South Africa and the Netherlands. South Africa have 5 points and they have to win this match at any cost to reach the semi-finals. If she loses then out. If the points have to be distributed due to rain, then it will be 6 points and then the matter will be stuck on NRR.
The second match is between Pakistan and Bangladesh. A lot will be decided by this match. If Pakistan wins this match, then it will get 6 points and then the matter will come on the net runner. Pakistan’s net run rate is currently much higher than India, while it is only slightly less than South Africa.
If he loses then he will be out and then Bangladesh will have 6 points. However, the net run rate of Bangladesh is much less than that of South Africa, Pakistan and India.
India needs only 1 point
At the same time, the third and last match will be between India and Zimbabwe. By the way, Team India needs only 1 point. That is, if the match in Melbourne is canceled due to rain, then Team India will get 1 point and with a total of 7 points, it will reach the last 4. On the other hand, if this does not happen, then Team India will have to win in any case, which will make it 8 points and it will go to the semi-finals by getting the first place in the group.
…then Team India will be out
On the other hand, if South Africa’s last match is canceled or it wins and Pakistan also wins, while Team India is a victim of upset, then it and Pakistan will have 6-6 points. In such a situation, the matter will come on the net runrate. Here Pakistan is in advantage, because its and South Africa’s NRR is already much higher than India and in such a situation, Team India will be out of the semi-final race.