India Women face Bangladesh Women in the first semi-final of the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 at Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Thursday, September 10. The Indians arrived at the knockout stage having won all three of their group matches, while Bangladesh finished second in Group B with two wins from three matches.
Shafali Verma spoke ahead of the match and expressed confidence in the squad’s readiness. The Women in Blue hold a 20-3 record against Bangladesh in women’s T20 internationals. Bangladesh’s last victory over India in the format came in the 2018 Women’s Asia Cup final, when they restricted India to 112 for 9.
How has Shafali Verma approached the semi-final?
Shafali has carried strong form into the semi-final and spoke about drawing on a recent performance against Bangladesh as a source of confidence. She earned the Player of the Match award in an ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 match against Bangladesh, scoring 53 from 34 balls, a knock she described as motivation rather than added pressure.
“As a batter, whenever I go to bat, I just start from zero. But what came from that innings, it’s just confidence. So, I will take that confidence and just start from zero again,” Shafali was quoted as saying by ICC.
“Of course, the conditions here are similar, like how it is in India. So, we all know the conditions. There is a bit of turn in the wicket. We all are prepared about that and I also know about the conditions. So, I just go out there, take time and enjoy it,” Shafali added on the conditions at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Is India’s squad fully prepared for the knockout stage?
India had a gap between their final group match and the semi-final, which the squad used for recovery and practice. Shafali confirmed the team made good use of that period and believes the side is in the right shape heading into the knockout fixture.
“We had good preparation. We got four days of break and on those days, we recovered well and did practice as well. So, we all are ready for the semis,” she said.
Questions have been raised about India’s middle order, with Bharti Fulmali and Richa Ghosh among those under scrutiny. Shafali backed her teammates to deliver when it matters.
“Well, I would say there are a bit of bad days. But they all are very good players. They all are very good batters. Just talking about Bharti (Fulmali) and Richa (Ghosh), they all are very good finishers and even do great things in the middle order as well. So, I am pretty sure they will do well for our team,” Shafali added.
The semi-final outing will decide which side makes it to the grand finale, set to be played in Dubai on Sunday, September 13.
