Aussies best bet to join Eng in semis

England have already booked their semifinal berth from Pool B, having won all their matches. They will play Spain on Monday while Australia will face Pakistan. India’s opponents will be South Africa, whose confidence is back after notching their first win of the tournament on Saturday.

Australia, on nine points and with a massive goal difference of plus-16, will most probably be the second team from Pool B to make the semis. Only a huge loss to Pakistan and a big Spain victory over England can upset their plans. Both scenarios are highly unlikely.

From India’s point of view, even a third-place finish in the pool seems out of reach. Finishing third would have helped them set up a clash with the third-placed team of the other pool for the fifth and sixth positions. With only three points and a goal difference of minus-four, they need to crush South Africa and hope for a big English win against Spain to achieve that – another unlikely scenario.

Realistically, their target should now be the fight for the seventh and eighth places. For that, they will have to finish fourth in the pool, enabling them to fight it out with the fourth-placed team in Pool A. A victory over South Africa is essential to achieve that goal.