Who's playing whom?
Australia and Netherlands are set to kick off the Saturday triple-header in Southampton at 10.30am local time (9.30am GMT). Title contenders Australia are entering the encounter on the back of two big wins against South Africa and Bangladesh. They restricted Bangladesh to 77 for 8 in 20 overs before chasing it down in 9.3 overs in their last game. Netherlands, meanwhile, suffered two losses, against Bangladesh and India respectively. This will be the teams' first meeting in T20Is; they've played five ODIs between 1988 and 2000.
Bangladesh and Pakistan will then face off at the same venue, at 2.30pm local time (1.30pm GMT). Pakistan are yet to get a W in the tournament, losing to India in the first game and South Africa in the second. Bangladesh, meanwhile, won their first match against Netherlands and are currently at No. 4 on the Group 1 table. The head-to-head between these teams is one-sided in favour of Pakistan who have won 16 out of 20 T20Is. However, Bangladesh have won three of those in the most recent meetings, in 2023.
The action will then move to Leeds where hosts England are set to take on Scotland at 6.30pm local time (5.30pm GMT). England are currently leading the Group 2 table with two wins, having beaten Sri Lanka and Ireland. Scotland are third on the table with one win in two games. They beat Ireland to notch their first-ever win at the T20 World Cup in Manchester and ran West Indies close in Leeds. These teams have met just once in this format, in the 2024 T20 World Cup, when England won by 10 wickets.
Team news and likely XIs
Phoebe Litchfield missed the match against Bangladesh and is expected to miss the Netherlands match as well with an acute quad injury. Ashleigh Gardner also missed the Bangladesh match with an ankle sprain. "I think Ash is tracking really well. I think she got through what she needed to today. So, yeah, at this stage it looks good, but I'm sure there'll be a few more things to assess before tomorrow's match," Ellyse Perry said of Gardner's chances of playing.
Netherlands brought in Myrthe van den Raad, replacing Sanya Khurana, for the match against India and are likely to go with the same combination.
Australia (probable): 1 Beth Mooney (wk), 2 Georgia Voll, 3 Ellyse Perry, 4 Grace Harris, 5 Georgia Wareham, 6 Nicola Carey, 7 Annabel Sutherland, 8 Sophie Molineux (capt), 9 Kim Garth, 10 Alana King, 11 Megan Schutt
Netherlands (probable): 1 Heather Siegers, 2 Phebe Molkenboer, 3 Babette de Leede (capt, wk), 4 Sterre Kalis, 5 Robine Rijke, 6 Frederique Overdijk, 7 Iris Zwilling, 8 Myrthe van den Raad 9 Caroline de Lange, 10 Silver Siegers, 11 Isabel van der Voning
For the match against Australia, Bangladesh brought in Nahida Akter and Sultana Khatun for Fariha Trisna and Sanjida Akter. Pakistan too made two changes in their previous match, with Iram Javed and Tuba Hasan coming in for Saira Jabeen and Tasmia Rubab.
Bangladesh (probable): 1 Dilara Akter, 2 Juairiya Ferdous, 3 Sharmin Akhter, 4 Nigar Sultana (capt), 5 Sobhana Mostary, 6 Shorna Akter, 7 Ritu Moni, 8 Nahida Akter, 9 Rabeya Khan, 10 Sultana Khatun, 11 Marufa Akter
Pakistan (probable): 1 Gull Feroza, 2 Muneeba Ali (wk), 3 Ayesha Zafar, 4 Iram Javed, 5 Natalia Pervaiz, 6 Aliya Riaz, 7 Fatima Sana (capt), 8 Rameen Shamim, 9 Tuba Hassan, 10 Nashra Sandhu, 11 Sadia Iqbal
England suffered a massive blow with captain Nat Sciver-Brunt ruled out of the next two games after she suffered a repeat strain of her left calf muscle against Ireland. Spin-bowling allrounder Charlie Dean will lead England in her absence. England are likely to bring in Sophia Dunkley into the XI.
England (probable): 1 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 2 Sophia Dunkley, 3 Amy Jones (wk), 4 Alice Capsey, 5 Heather Knight, 6 Freya Kemp, 7 Dani Gibson, 8 Charlie Dean (capt), 9 Sophie Ecclestone, 10 Linsey Smith, 11 Lauren Bell
Scotland (probable): 1 Darcey Carter, 2 Katherine Fraser, 3 Kathryn Bryce (capt), 4 Sarah Bryce (wk), 5 Ailsa Lister, 6 Megan McColl, 7 Priyanaz Chatterji, 8 Rachel Slater, 9 Chloe Abel, 10 Kirstie Gordon, 11 Gabriella Fontenla
Players to watch
Captain Sophie Molineux has produced excellent spells in Australia's last two games. Against South Africa, she opened the bowling and dismissed Sune Luus cheaply before returning in the 12th over to remove an in-form Laura Wolvaardt for 44. She finished with figures of 2 for 17 from her three overs and followed it up with 2 for 14 against Bangladesh. In a side overflowing with star allrounders, it's difficult to pick out one standout performer but Molineux has certainly put herself in that conversation.
Marufa Akter has continued to be one of the few bright spots for a Bangladesh side still searching for a complete team performance. Against Netherlands, she made smart use of her variations to claim 2 for 31 and she followed that up by taking the lone wicket to fall in Australia's innings, dismissing Beth Mooney for 10. Her new-ball spell is likely to be crucial once again when Bangladesh take on Pakistan.
Legspinner Caroline de Lange has emerged as Netherlands' most influential bowler at the tournament. Against Bangladesh, she turned the game with two wickets in quick succession, first breaking a strong opening partnership before dismissing captain Nigar Sultana for a first-ball duck on the very next delivery, finishing with figures of 2 for 27. Against India, she once again provided the breakthrough removing Smriti Mandhana for 74 and later accounting for Yastika Bhatia. Alongside Babette de Leede, she has been central to Netherlands throughout the competition.
It's difficult to look beyond captain Fatima Sana who continues to carry much of Pakistan's burden. Against South Africa, she rescued her side with a fighting half-century, lifting them from 50 for 8 to 126. While she endured a mixed day in the field, dropping two catches and being involved in two run-outs, she still finished as Pakistan's leading bowler with figures of 3 for 16. Her all-round influence remains crucial to Pakistan's slim hopes.
England's spinners have played a pivotal role in both their victories, with offspinner Charlie Dean among the standout performers. Carrying excellent form into the tournament, Dean has picked up four wickets in two matches while maintaining an economy rate of just 4.14. The coming games could prove especially significant, with Dean set to step in as captain during Sciver-Brunt's absence, a role she has already filled in recent series against New Zealand and India.
Scotland opener Darcey Carter showed impressive resolve as she battled a leg injury to take Scotland close to a win against West Indies. The 21-year old had also impressed in the warm-up matches against Pakistan and Netherlands. Her composure at the top of the order alongside Katherine Fraser has been a major positive for Scotland.
Pitch and conditions
There's unlikely to be any weather interruption during both games in Southampton, where clear conditions are forecast and temperatures are expected to peak at around 23 degrees Celsius. All three matches so far at the venue have been won by teams chasing.
Leeds is also set for an uninterrupted evening of cricket on Saturday, though conditions are expected to be slightly overcast.
Quotes
"I feel like Scotland are a force to be reckoned with. It's fun to play with Scotland and Ireland, so to play against them at a World Cup is really exciting."
England spinner Sophie Ecclestone
"I think it's just confidence to be fair. We don't feel out of place at all and we know when we're at our best, we can compete with anyone."
Scotland bowler Rachel Slater
