England Women vs South Africa Women, 1st Semi-Final - Live Cricket Score, Commentary
Start Time
3:00 PM
9:30 AMGMT
3:00 PMLOCAL
England Women opt to bowl
Have Your Say
Laura Wolvaardt: We were looking to bowl first as well. We are playing an extra batter today. Bosch comes in for Klaas.
England Women (Playing XI): Amy Jones(w), Tammy Beaumont, Heather Knight, Danielle Wyatt-Hodge, Nat Sciver-Brunt(c), Sophia Dunkley, Alice Capsey, Charlotte Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell
Laura Wolvaardt: We were looking to bowl first as well. We are playing an extra batter today
Nat Sciver-Brunt: We would like to bowl first, putting them under pressure with the ball first and then chase it under lights. We got the same team. She will be playing through a little bit of pain, but she will be raring to go. Trust the process and trust everything you have done and enjoy the occasion.
England Women have won the toss and have opted to field
Pitch report - Katey Martin: It is a new pitch and there is a nice shaving of grass as well. There might be extra bounce on this wicket and we will see some shape for the bowlers early on. There will be some turn as well.
14:21 Local Time, 08:51 GMT, 14:21 IST: Good news for England. Sophie Ecclestone is seen limbering up and is also having a keen look at the surface.
Rakesh Sharma: Big day ahead - England vs South Africa in the World Cup semifinal! England may have had the upper hand in the league stage, but knockouts are a whole new game. South Africa will be hungry for revenge, while England’s experience could make the difference.
Injury concerns: Sophie Ecclestone injured her left shoulder, while fielding, in Vizag and ended up bowling only 4 balls in that game. She appeared to be fine (in the dug-out) during England's chase and if that is anything to go by, she will be raring to go and make the most of the spin-friendly conditions in Guwahati.
Team changes: South Africa lost their last league game to Australia in Indore, and only possible change could be the replacement of Khaka with off-spinning all-rounder Shangase. As for England, they brought in the experienced Dani Wyatt-Hodge in place of Emma Lamb for their last game against New Zealand in Vizag. They are highly unlikely to change the team.
Spin to win? 41 of the 63 wickets in this World Cup have fallen to spin at this venue. The batters have found it tough to cope with the lack of bounce on occasions, and South Africa - in their only outing at this venue - were guilty of staying glued to the crease and relied on an all-hands approach against spin. If those trends were anything to go by, spin will once again be a deciding factor and England surely hold an edge in terms of their resources in that department.
Key players for England: Nat Sciver-Brunt. It's tough to look beyond the best all-rounder in the format. The England skipper had middling returns (by her lofty standards) with both bat and ball, but she is a big-match player and it would be incredibly silly to bet against her. Heather Knight is the leading run-scorer for her side, and the decent form of Amy Jones will give them plenty of confidence at the top of the order. While Linsey Smith is an expert at attacking the stumps, Dean can outfox the batters with her drift. Not to forget the number one ODI bowler, Sophie Ecclestone.
Key players for South Africa: The opening combo of Wolvaardt and Brits hold the key in the batting department alongside Nadine de Klerk, who displayed excellent skills and game awareness to help her side win a couple of games. Kapp, as ever, will be crucial with both bat and ball given her rich vein of experience. In the bowling department, Mlaba stood out by picking 11 wickets from 7 games. Unfortunately for them, the pacers haven't been as consistent but the contributions of Tryon with the ball have really helped them find the balance in the middle overs.
What happened the last time these two sides met? Alas, South African supporters might want to skip this. It is almost like that day never existed. Opting to bowl in Guwahati, England dismantled their opponents with spin and recorded their first ever 10-wicket win against South Africa in ODIs. Only one batter (Sinalo Jafta) managed to get past 6 for the Proteas as they were bundled out for 69 in 20.4 overs. It was that bad. The spin trio of Smith, Ecclestone and Dean shared 7 wickets among them, while the opening duo of Beaumont and Jones chased it in a canter.
13:45 Local Time, 08:15 GMT, 13:45 IST: There have been 6 ICC events in the women's game since the 2017 ODI World Cup in England, and it was only once South Africa (2018 T20 World Cup) missed out on the semis slot. Numbers are no different (2024 T20 World Cup) for England either. To make matters interesting, these two sides met in the semis of the last 2 editions of the ODI World Cup with England winning both. Is it gonna be third time lucky for South Africa today? Thankfully, no real threats on the weather front and with that positive news, we welcome you - to this mega contest - the first semi-final of the 2025 Women's World Cup.
Preview
Rewind to February 2023. South Africa were up against it when they were scheduled to take on England in the T20 World Cup semifinal. Until that day, they had never reached a final of the World Cup. Fast forward to October 2025 and the South Africans have now been to two finals. They did eventually beat England in that home semifinal in 2023 before toppling the mighty Australians in the semifinal last year. They went on to lose both the finals but the fact that they got that far was certainly a step in the right direction.
On Wednesday (October 29), they will be eyeing their third straight final in a World Cup, albeit their first one in the ODI format. And yet again, like it was the case in 2023, it's the mighty England who stand in their path. It's the same team that absolutely mauled them in their first game of the tournament. And quite ironically, this rematch will also be held at the same venue. South Africa certainly have to battle many demons in this clash to take one step closer to the title.
Even though they did win five successive games in the tournament, their batting performances against England and Australia either side of those wins highlighted the need to step up against top-tier opposition in the ODI format despite their recent success in T20Is. England literally took just a little over 20 overs to bowl them out for 69 and Australia shot them out for 97. The pressure will firmly be on their batters now to ensure they don't fold in meek fashion for a third time with so much on the line.
If South Africa can look back at history for some inspiration, England can do the same given they beat the same team at the same stage in the last two 50-over World Cup editions - in 2017 and 2022. While they have been stretched by different teams in different scenarios this edition, England still lost only one game so far - to arch-rivals Australia. England have been to the finals six times so far, unlike their opponents and they will bank on that experience as well to come out on top in a big clash. If games are indeed won on paper, they will fancy another crack at Australia in the title clash to deny them an eighth title and close the gap in their storied rivalry, having won the trophy four times themselves. But for now, it is indeed one step at a time.
When: Wednesday, October 29 at 3 PM IST
Where: Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati
What to expect: In the four games played here so far, run-scoring hasn't been the easiest. India did post 269 in one game but other matches have witnessed low totals with spinners predominantly dominating proceedings. Thankfully, rain is not on the horizon.
Team News
England: England are not expected to make any changes to their settled XI, with Danni Wyatt-Hodge likely to retain her spot ahead of Emma Lamb. However, there are some concerns surrounding the availability of Sophie Ecclestone. Amy Jones did reveal that Ecclestone 'should be okay' for the contest though.
Probable XI: Tammy Beaumont, Amy Jones (wk), Heather Knight, Nat Sciver-Brunt (c), Sophia Dunkley, Emma Lamb, Alice Capsey, Charlotte Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell
South Africa: The South Africans might bring back Nondumiso Shangase into the XI in place of the veteran Ayabonga Khakha.
Probable XI: Laura Wolvaardt (c), Tazmin Brits, Sune Luus, Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Sinalo Jafta (wk), Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Nondumiso Shangase, Masabata Klaas, Nonkululeko Mlaba
Did you know:
- Tazmin Brits has four hundreds and an unbeaten 55 in her last 10 outings. In the five other knocks, she has failed to get to double figures, including three ducks.
- Marizane Kapp is four wickets away from equalling Jhulan Goswami for the most wickets in World Cups.
What they said:
"We've had some success in ICC tournaments. Obviously, a totally different format, but that semi-final loss against England was four years ago. We're a totally different-looking side. They've got a lot of different players as well. So I think it's sort of a fresh opportunity, and it starts from zero." - South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt on her side's chances
"I think it's suits our bowlers really well. Obviously we've got some of the best spinners and that wicket was really conducive to that. So, I'm excited to keep to our spinners on that wicket." - England wicketkeeper Amy Jones on the surface
Rewind to February 2023. South Africa were up against it when they were scheduled to take on England in the T20 World Cup semifinal. Until that day, they had never reached a final of the World Cup. Fast forward to October 2025 and the South Africans have now been to two finals. They did eventually beat England in that home semifinal in 2023 before toppling the mighty Australians in the semifinal last year. They went on to lose both the finals but the fact that they got that far was certainly a step in the right direction.
On Wednesday (October 29), they will be eyeing their third straight final in a World Cup, albeit their first one in the ODI format. And yet again, like it was the case in 2023, it's the mighty England who stand in their path. It's the same team that absolutely mauled them in their first game of the tournament. And quite ironically, this rematch will also be held at the same venue. South Africa certainly have to battle many demons in this clash to take one step closer to the title.
Even though they did win five successive games in the tournament, their batting performances against England and Australia either side of those wins highlighted the need to step up against top-tier opposition in the ODI format despite their recent success in T20Is. England literally took just a little over 20 overs to bowl them out for 69 and Australia shot them out for 97. The pressure will firmly be on their batters now to ensure they don't fold in meek fashion for a third time with so much on the line.
If South Africa can look back at history for some inspiration, England can do the same given they beat the same team at the same stage in the last two 50-over World Cup editions - in 2017 and 2022. While they have been stretched by different teams in different scenarios this edition, England still lost only one game so far - to arch-rivals Australia. England have been to the finals six times so far, unlike their opponents and they will bank on that experience as well to come out on top in a big clash. If games are indeed won on paper, they will fancy another crack at Australia in the title clash to deny them an eighth title and close the gap in their storied rivalry, having won the trophy four times themselves. But for now, it is indeed one step at a time.
When: Wednesday, October 29 at 3 PM IST
Where: Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati
What to expect: In the four games played here so far, run-scoring hasn't been the easiest. India did post 269 in one game but other matches have witnessed low totals with spinners predominantly dominating proceedings. Thankfully, rain is not on the horizon.
Team News
England: England are not expected to make any changes to their settled XI, with Danni Wyatt-Hodge likely to retain her spot ahead of Emma Lamb. However, there are some concerns surrounding the availability of Sophie Ecclestone. Amy Jones did reveal that Ecclestone 'should be okay' for the contest though.
Probable XI: Tammy Beaumont, Amy Jones (wk), Heather Knight, Nat Sciver-Brunt (c), Sophia Dunkley, Emma Lamb, Alice Capsey, Charlotte Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell
South Africa: The South Africans might bring back Nondumiso Shangase into the XI in place of the veteran Ayabonga Khakha.
Probable XI: Laura Wolvaardt (c), Tazmin Brits, Sune Luus, Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Sinalo Jafta (wk), Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Nondumiso Shangase, Masabata Klaas, Nonkululeko Mlaba
Did you know:
- Tazmin Brits has four hundreds and an unbeaten 55 in her last 10 outings. In the five other knocks, she has failed to get to double figures, including three ducks.
- Marizane Kapp is four wickets away from equalling Jhulan Goswami for the most wickets in World Cups.
What they said:
"We've had some success in ICC tournaments. Obviously, a totally different format, but that semi-final loss against England was four years ago. We're a totally different-looking side. They've got a lot of different players as well. So I think it's sort of a fresh opportunity, and it starts from zero." - South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt on her side's chances
"I think it's suits our bowlers really well. Obviously we've got some of the best spinners and that wicket was really conducive to that. So, I'm excited to keep to our spinners on that wicket." - England wicketkeeper Amy Jones on the surface
Squads:
England Women Squad: Amy Jones(w), Tammy Beaumont, Heather Knight, Danielle Wyatt-Hodge, Nat Sciver-Brunt(c), Sophia Dunkley, Alice Capsey, Charlotte Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell, Emma Lamb, Sarah Glenn, Em Arlott, Lauren Filer
South Africa Women Squad: Laura Wolvaardt(c), Tazmin Brits, Sune Luus, Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Sinalo Jafta(w), Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Masabata Klaas, Ayabonga Khaka, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Anneke Bosch, Tumi Sekhukhune, Nondumiso Shangase, Karabo Meso
