Women’s T20 World Cup the closest ever, says England’s Georgia Elwiss

Georgia Elwiss has labelled the 2020 Women’s T20 World Cup the “closest ever” as England get set to take on Pakistan in another must-win Group B on clash on Friday.

England slipped up in their tournament opener, losing by six wickets to South Africa, before getting back on track with a convincing 98-run beating of tournament newbies Thailand – captain Heather Knight firing a fine hundred.

England, under normal circumstances, would expect another routine win in their next game; Pakistan have beaten England only once in 13 attempts in T20 internationals (once in 24 games, when including ODIs), but got their World Cup campaign off to a stunning start with a shock eight-wicket win over 2016 champions West Indies.

The result has thrown Group B wide open, with England tied on two points with West Indies, South Africa and their opponents on Friday – Pakistan and South Africa having played a game fewer.

“It shows just how close the tournament is,” Elwiss told Sky Sports. “Without a doubt [it’s the closest ever]. You’ve seen that already with some of the results that have come.

“Both groups are really tough to call and both teams on their day can do it – probably one individual who can take the game away from you.

“It’s really nice to see sides that have struggled in the past, come to the fore and get success for the work they’ve put in over the last few years.”

Pakistan have never qualified from the group stage of a Women’s T20 World Cup, winning just five games – three against lower-ranked opposition – and losing 16 in previous tournaments.

Pakistan’s best-ever showing was in the 2016 World T20, where they upset their great rivals India and beat Bangladesh, but they fell short of a semi-final berth after being well-beaten by England in their final game.

Despite enjoying success against them previously, Elwiss said England will not be taking their opponents lightly, with the side believing they’re finding form at just the right time following that initial blip against South Africa.

“We’re confident in what we’re doing, we’re building nicely and its now just about putting it together at the right time,” added Elwiss.

“We took quite a lot out of that first game, the heart we showed, and you always probably take more out of a loss than a win.

“Then, [against Thailand] for Heather to bat the way she did and for the bowlers to put in that complete performance, it was really pleasing.

“It does take a little bit of pressure off us, getting that first win on the board, and we’re just looking forward now to playing against a good Pakistan team, who had success in their first game.

“They’re a great side. They’ve got some really dangerous players, but the girls had a really good series against them recently in Malaysia.

“We’ll take a lot of confidence from the way we played over there, but they’re not to be underestimated.

“We’ve got to take each game at a time, as you never know what can happen in T20 cricket. We need to do what we do best to make sure we get the right result.”

Live coverage of the 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup continues on Sky Sports, with England Women next in action against Pakistan Women on Friday at 7.30am.

(c) Sky Sports 2020: Women’s T20 World Cup the closest ever, says England’s Georgia Elwiss