AFTER sealing qualification for the ICC Women’s World Cup, Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana immediately set her sights on ramping up preparations for the tournament. Better competition — including against the top sides in the women’s game — she said will help Pakistan brace for the challenge ahead.

The onus is on the Pakistan Cricket Board to provide those opportunities, with Fatima saying her team is looking to continue breaking barriers for women’s cricket in Pakistan. Her side made the best use of the home advantage in the World Cup qualifying tournament, rediscovering their form and winning all their five matches to book their spot at this year’s event in India.

Before the qualifiers, they had last won a One-Day International in December 2023. Pakistan, though, will be playing their matches on a neutral venue in accordance with the agreement reached between the PCB and the Board of Control for Cricket in India ahead of the Champions Trophy. India showed at the latter tournament how much of an advantage that was and it is Pakistan’s turn to make the best of it.

Details of where Pakistan will play their games will be clear soon, but for now, the side should be looking to build on their performances in the qualifiers.

All-rounder Fatima led the team from the front as her side beat Ireland, Scotland, 2013 World Cup runners-up West Indies, Thailand and finally Bangladesh.

Batters Sidra Amin and Aliya Riaz struck three half-centuries each across the five games with opener Muneeba Ali getting two. Spinners Nashra Sandhu and Sadia Iqbal impressed, with the pacers contributing too.

The team’s task now is to improve Pakistan’s dismal record at the World Cup, where they have won just three of their 30 matches so far. The signs, though, show that Pakistan can improve on their fifth place finish at the World Cup in 2009. But there is still work to be done, as Fatima pointed out.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2025