India and Pakistan might have an encounter in the World Cup 2023 semi-finals. What are the possibilities?
INDIA AND PAKISTAN IN SEMI-FINALS
Cricket fans are always eager for the India vs Pakistan match, especially in the World Cup. In the World Cup 2023, India and Pakistan’s encounter in the league stage was a one-sided affair. After the game, Pakistan lost three back-to-back matches. Firstly, Pakistan faced a defeat to Australia by 62 runs, followed by a loss to Afghanistan by eight wickets, and their third loss was against South Africa by one wicket. However, after their three consecutive defeats, Pakistan regained their momentum by defeating Bangladesh by seven wickets. Recently, they acquired their giant win against New Zealand.
Following their victory against New Zealand, Pakistan have their hopes high for the semi-finals. However, it isn’t as easy as it looks for Pakistan to make it to the semi-finals. For them to qualify for the semi-finals, three situations should occur.
Firstly, New Zealand should lose to Sri Lanka in their only league match remaining. This loss will keep New Zealand holding just eight points. In the meantime, Pakistan should win the match against England to earn ten points. In this way, Pakistan will climb a place higher than New Zealand. Moreover, Australia and South Africa should defeat Afghanistan, restricting them to earning ten points. This situation would make way for the India and Pakistan encounter in the semi-finals.
OTHER SITUATIONS
In the second situation, if New Zealand and Pakistan win over Sri Lanka and England, respectively, the net run rate will come into play. However, in this situation, Afghanistan should lose both their remaining marches to Aus and SA.
In the third situation, Pakistan would want the rain god to shower in the NZ vs SL match. In addition, Pakistan should triumph against England and acquire ten points, leading them in the points table to fourth position. However, in the meantime, if Afghanistan wins one of the two remaining matches, they will gain ten points. Accordingly, the net run rate(NRR) will determine the semi-final spot.
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