Shafali Verma ready to fill Pratika Rawal’s shoes, eyes impact in Women’s World Cup semi-final clash
While Pratika Rawal will not be able to play due to her injury, Shafali Verma will play for India in the IND-W – AUS-W semi-finals of the 2025 Women’s World Cup. The youngster showed confidence by saying he aims to keep his game simple and effective as India march towards a historic final.
India opening batsman Shafali Verma, who recently joined the team in place of the injured Pratika Rawal in the ongoing ODI World Cup 2025, is keen to make her mark if selected to play against Australia. At only 21 years old, he has a wealth of experience and from the very beginning he shared his thoughts on the possible difficulties of stepping into the knockout game.
“Of course it will be difficult if you get straight to the semi-finals. I think playing at home in the World Cup is a different motivation because of the huge crowd supporting you. When you see a full stadium, your feet automatically start moving as an athlete. The motivation is 100% there. The more I keep it simple, the better I perform.”
“If God has sent me here, I will try to play my best game with the best of intentions, if I play, I will try to do what the team needs, do what I do best and keep it simple. I will try to tell myself little things like ‘calm down’ and ‘believe in yourself’. I hope these will help and I am doing well in training and hopefully things will get better for me,” Verma said in a video shared by BCCI on Wednesday.
Shafali is still trying to master the 50-over format, which doesn’t come as naturally as the T20 format, where he has an impressive strike rate of 131 and has made 90 appearances for the national team.
I’m motivated. Confident. Full of faith.
Shafali Verma
Hear it from: #TeamIndia Opening before the semi-final – Posted by @mihirlee_58
get #CWC25 tickets now: https://t.co/vGzkkgwXt4#WomenInBlue | #INDvAUS | @TheShafaliVerma pic.twitter.com/xyrgy1eHBt
— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) 29 October 2025
“I had long batting sessions the last two days, today and tomorrow, and I felt great knowing that I did everything I set out to do,” he added.
India secured their place in the top four with three wins, three losses and one of seven matches abandoned in the group stage. An important victory over New Zealand in a must-win situation saw them progress to the semi-finals, where they will face reigning champions Australia.
The highly anticipated match between the two teams will take place on Thursday at DY Patil Sports Academy.
Also read| What if the India-Australia Women’s World Cup 2025 semi-final is cancelled? Here’s how the ICC reserve day rule works
