--- title: "India vs Pakistan at Edgbaston opener; Could spark nationwide growth in women's cricket" sdDatePublished: "2026-06-14T13:36:00Z" source: "https://www.olympics.com/en/news/india-vs-pakistan-womens-t20-world-cup-2026-harmanpreet-kaur-fatima-sana" topics: - name: "sport" identifier: "medtop:15000000" - name: "sport event" identifier: "medtop:20001108" - name: "cricket" identifier: "medtop:20000888" - name: "sport achievement" identifier: "medtop:20001301" locations: - "Australia" - "Hampshire" - "Sheffield" - "New Zealand" - "Zimbabwe" - "United Arab Emirates" - "South Africa" - "Cardiff" - "Bristol" - "Birmingham" - "Pakistan" - "India" --- India vs Pakistan at Edgbaston opener; Could spark nationwide growth in women's cricket India's bid for a new legacy at T20 World Cup 2026 faces Pakistan’s youthful charge India's bid for a new legacy at T20 World Cup 2026 faces Pakistan’s youthful charge Harmanpreet Kaur and Fatima Sana also emphasised the importance of a winning start ahead of Sunday’s India vs Pakistan clash. India captain Harmanpreet Kaur is hoping to build on her side’s ODI Cricket World Cup victory from last year as they begin their Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign against rivals Pakistan on Sunday. Edgbaston will host the next act in one of cricket's greatest rivalries, with India coming out best in the two sides’ recent meetings. The Indian women’s cricket team , third in the T20I world rankings, have won all of their last three India vs Pakistan contests, including a six-wicket win in Dubai during the 2024 edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup . “The first game is very important, it always sets the tone. We are really looking forward to it, and hopefully, we will play our best,” Kaur said. “Winning the ODI World Cup was a great moment for all of us. We were waiting for that moment for so many years, and it's good to see years of hard work pay off.” “This tournament is equally important, everybody is shaping up well, and hopefully we will play our best cricket. Every year cricket is growing, and every year more people love it, and they want to watch us play more and more. This World Cup is going to be very exciting.” India lost their pre-tournament series against England and were also beaten by Nat Sciver-Brunt’s side in Wednesday’s warm-up game in Cardiff, but Kaur believes the learnings from those outings will strengthen them for the tournament ahead. As well as the team's own desire to win a first Women’s T20 World Cup trophy, Kaur is well aware of the transformative impact back-to-back tournament triumphs would have on her country. “If we play good cricket, we will be able to create some good memories here, definitely things are going to change back home, which we saw in the 2025 Cricket World Cup, when we won,” Kaur said. “After that, we have seen a massive change, many girls are coming to play cricket. Hopefully, what we’re doing will keep motivating them and encouraging them to play. “It’s good to see how everyone is coming together and trying to take women’s cricket to the next level.” Pakistan banking on youth - Fatima Sana Meanwhile, a win in the Asia Cup in 2022 remains Pakistan's only win over India in nine T20I meetings. But Pakistan’s Fatima Sana is backing the youth in her side to come to the fore as they look to start the tournament on a positive note. “It is about setting the tone, so we will try and win this match, so we have options for different matches,” she said. “I think we are very hopeful for this tournament because we have some youngsters who have come into the side and proved themselves in the last series against South Africa and Zimbabwe, so I think we have a good combination.” Support from those around her has eased the challenge of leading Pakistan at the young age of 24, allowing her to focus on her all-round cricketing contributions. Fatima was made skipper in 2024 and has already led the side at the T20 Women’s World Cup 2024 and Women's ODI World Cup 2025. “It is a different feeling because everyone in my team is senior, and they are supporting me,” she said. “The coaching staff are also supporting me, and it makes my job easy because of them. I just continue to play my cricket, and they help to make my job easy.” A good turnout is expected at Edgbaston while Pakistan also visit the Hampshire Bowl, Headingley and the Bristol County Ground as the team sitting eighth in the T20I rankings look to make the semi-finals for the first time in their history. “The England crowd is always very good because they support the cricket and not the opposition, so I believe there will be a lot of the crowd there cheering for us,” Fatima added. Picture by 2025 Getty Images India eye strong statement against Pakistan in T20 World Cup opener Women’s T20 World Cup winners: Australian cricket team’s dominance unmatched, New Zealand reigning champions - full list