England rout Pakistan; South Africa seal semis spot

Christchurch: England were back to their blistering best as they defeated Pakistan by nine wickets to put themselves in a good position to qualify for the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2022 semi-finals.

Seamer Katherine Brunt was in red-hot form as she and spinner Sophie Ecclestone took three wickets apiece to skittle Pakistan for 105 at the Hagley Oval. Danni Wyatt also enjoyed a return to form to lead England's chase as her 76 not out saw the defending champions reach their total with more than 30 overs to spare.

The result hauls England up to fourth in the overall standings, one point behind West Indies -- whose game against South Africa was abandoned earlier on Thursday -- and ensuring another win for Heather Knight's team against Bangladesh would see them leapfrog the Maroon Warriors and secure a semi-final spot.

Brief Scores: England 107/1 in 19.2 overs (Danni Wyatt 76 not out, Heather Knight 24 not out; Diana Baig 1/14) beat Pakistan 105 all out in 41.3 overs (Sidra Ameen 32, Sidra Nawaz 23; Katherine Brunt 3/17, Sophie Ecclestone 3/18) by nine wickets.

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