The World Cup fixture between Sri Lanka and Australia was washed out in Colombo today (October 4) – here's why that could boost Sri Lanka's chances of semi-final qualification.
The washout means both sides receive one point apiece. Australia sit at the top of the table on three points after they beat New Zealand in their opening fixture, while Sri Lanka are in fifth after losing to India in theirs. England, Bangladesh and India all have two points, while New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa are yet to get off the mark.
Match 5, Australia Women vs Sri Lanka Women
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Why the washout vs Australia helps Sri Lanka
Australia went into the Sri Lanka fixture as heavy favourites. They have never lost to Sri Lanka in a women's ODI and are heavily tipped as favourites to win the tournament. Thus, Sri Lanka were expected to get zero points from the fixture, and likely a heavy dent to their net run rate.
In previous Women's World Cups which have followed the same format as this edition – 2017 and 2022 – four wins in the group stage has been the magic number to advance to the knockouts. All of the semi-final qualifiers in 2017 went through with a minimum of four wins, while New Zealand were the first team to miss out having secured three wins. In 2022, three wins was enough to give West Indies' a place in the semi-final, with a no result against South Africa giving them an extra point to edge out India and New Zealand, who also had three wins.
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In the scenario this time where two or more teams are tied on three wins for the final semi-final qualification spot, a point from the no result against Australia could boost Sri Lanka above the others. It also means that Sri Lanka can afford to lose against one of the non 'big three' teams and still be in with a chance of qualification.
If Sri Lanka still manage to get four wins, the extra point against Australia will also boost them further, meaning they may not need to rely on net run rate to see them through against others with four wins.
Sri Lanka will face England next in their allocation in a week's time, meaning they will get all of their likely most challenging matches out of the way early. From there, they will play New Zealand, South Africa, Bangladesh and Pakistan – who are all likely their direct competitors for semi-final qualification. They also play all-but one of those games in Colombo, giving them a solid base and consistency of conditions compared to others with significant travel mileage.
In short, getting a point in a fixture they would have been expected to lose could significantly help Sri Lanka qualify for a World Cup semi-final for the first time ever.
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