India beats Pakistan in women's Cricket World Cup with disputed dismissal and no handshakes

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Kranti Goud and Deepti Sharma took three wickets each as India routed archrival Pakistan by 88 runs Sunday in a women's Cricket World Cup match that was notable for a contentious run out and a lack of customary handshakes.

Pakistan captain Fatima Sana won the toss and chose to bowl, restricting India to 247 in 50 overs. In reply, Pakistan was dismissed for 159 in 43 overs.

Pakistan’s first wicket was lost in a confusing manner when opening batter Muneeba Ali was adjudged run out. Ali had grounded her bat after returning to her crease, having moved forward to play a shot. Her bat lifted, though, as a throw from an Indian fielder hit the stumps. Sana questioned the call, saying her teammate was not attempting a run, but the decision stood.

The only half-century of the game in Colombo came from Pakistan's Sidra Amin, who posted 81 in her 13th 50-plus score in the one-day international format.

Amin shared 69 runs for the fourth wicket with Natalia Pervaiz (33) off 96 deliveries to lift Pakistan's hopes briefly after it was reduced to 26-3.

Seam bowler Goud took 3-20 and spinner Sharma returned 3-45.

Harleen Deol top-scored for India with 46 and Richa Ghosh made a quick-fire 35 not out.

Sana and India captain Harmanpreet Kaur didn't shake hands during the toss and the teams walked off without exchanging customary shakes after the match amid political tensions between the South Asian neighbors. The India and Pakistan captains at the recent men’s Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates also didn't shake hands in three matches between the archrivals.

The men's T20 Asia Cup marked the resumption of cricket ties between India and Pakistan only months after the neighboring countries were engaged in a tense border situation in May.

Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana shared an 48-run opening stand before Sana had Mandhana lbw for a 32-ball 23. Rawal made 31 before she was bowled by left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal.

Kaur scored 19 before she was caught behind off seam bowler Diana Baig.

Jemimah Rodrigues (32), Deepti Sharma (25) and Sneh Rana (20) all made valuable contributions.

Ghosh hit two sixes and three boundaries in her innings as India scored 44 off the last five overs.

Baig took 4-69 in her 10 overs for Pakistan, while Iqbal and Sana had two wickets each in a match that was stopped for 15 minutes because insects were bothering the players

India tops the eight-team league with two wins in two games, a point ahead of defending champion Australia.

Pakistan has lost both its matches so far.

New Zealand and South Africa meet Monday in Indore, India, with both teams chasing their first win of the tournament.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Pakistan's Sidra Amin celebrates her fifty runs during the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

India's Harleen Deol plays a shot during the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

India's captain Harmanpreet Kaur, right, and Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana proceed for coin toss before the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

India's captain Harmanpreet Kaur, right, tosses a coin as Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana watches before the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

India's captain Harmanpreet Kaur, right, and Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana proceed for coin toss before the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

India's captain Harmanpreet Kaur, right, and Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana look on before the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana, center, speaks to Pakistan's Diana Baig during the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

India's captain Harmanpreet Kaur, right, and Pakistan's captain Fatima Sana look on before the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup match between India and Pakistan at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Oct, 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Nobody paying attention over the past 24 months would be surprised to see Indiana – yes, Indiana – leading the way into this year’s College Football Playoff.

But anyone paying attention over the last 24 hours knew the only sure thing beyond the Hoosiers was that the playoff selection committee was destined to get picked apart when it released the pairings for this season's 12-team bracket on Sunday.

Most of that second-guessing will be coming from Notre Dame, which was passed over for Alabama and Miami for two bubble spots. The Fighting Irish dropped two notches in the CFP rankings over the last two weeks, down to No. 11, despite a 10-game winning streak, winning their finale by 29 points and simply sitting on the couch Saturday.

No. 9 Alabama didn't move at all in the CFP rankings after a 28-7 loss to No. 3 Georgia that looked worse than that.

No. 10 Miami didn't play either, but the Hurricanes' 27-24 win over Notre Dame in Week 1 played a role in their move once the teams were grouped right next to each other after BYU lost its game on Saturday and dropped one spot.

“Everyone can spin the metrics in favor of the team or teams they support,” committee chairman Hunter Yurachek explained. “You're always going to have controversy. That’s why we debated for so long, 9, 10 and 11, into the early-moning hours, and woke up at sunrise to do the same thing — make sure we got it right.”

The committee’s other key decision was choosing James Madison over Duke for the final spot. The selection left the Atlantic Coast Conference champion out of the mix, but didn’t fully exclude the ACC because Miami made it.

The rest of the field includes No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia and No. 4 Texas Tech, which joined Indiana in getting first-round byes.

The Hoosiers moved to No. 1 with their 13-10 win over the Buckeyes on Saturday — their first Big Ten title since 1967 — and their 1-2 positioning sets up a possible rematch in the national title game Jan. 19.

Then it was No. 5 Oregon, followed by Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama, Miami, American champion Tulane and James Madison of the Sun Belt.

The playoffs start Dec. 19 with No. 9 Alabama at No. 8 Oklahoma. On Dec. 20, it's No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 12 James Madison at No. 5 Oregon.

Winners move to the quarterfinals, which will feature Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Eve, then Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl, Indiana in the Rose Bowl and Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1.

This is a particularly costly and painful snub for the Fighting Irish. They lost their first two games of the season – one to Miami, the other to Texas A&M -- by a combined four points.

They did not play a tough schedule the rest of the way; it was ranked 44th, compared to 6th for Alabama but 45th for Miami. But they won all those games easily.

It also hurts the pocketbook. Where conferences split $4 million for each team they place into the first round, Notre Dame – as an independent – would have banked the full amount for itself.

Yurachek said the committee had not previously considered Miami’s Aug. 31 win over Notre Dame because there were always other teams in the mix, namely Alabama and BYU. But when BYU lost, the Irish and Hurricanes ended up right next to each other, which made that Miami win more important. Yurachek directed the committee to go back and rewatch it.

“Really, how Miami's defense dominated Notre Dame's running game, where for the rest of the season, their running game dominated most of the teams they played,” Yurachek said when asked what the committee saw in that game.

Alabama (10-3) is in despite three losses. Those who believe the Tide deserve it will look at these factors:

—An eight-game winning streak after that 14-point, season-opening loss to Florida State that included a 24-21 victory at Georgia for a season split while, for instance, BYU lost both its games against Texas Tech.

--Ignoring the above, there was the “You can’t lose ground for playing in the title game” argument. Last year, Alabama had three losses and was passed over for SMU, which was coming off a loss in the ACC title game. Using the same logic, someone other than the Tide needed to go this time.

Duke tried to make a compelling argument that its seven wins over Power Four teams, including the victory over Virginia in the ACC title game, made it more deserving than James Madison for that fifth and final automatic spot for conference champs.

But the Blue Devils had five losses. And Virginia was ranked four (now nine) spots lower than Miami, the ACC's best team by many measurements.

James Madison's playoff game against a mega-team from a mega-conference — Oregon — will suss out whether teams like that should be playing for the title.

History, however, might look back on Duke's win if league title games are ever eliminated from the schedule due to their growing irrelevance. Other than eliminating BYU (but not Alabama) and flip-flopping Indiana and Ohio State, this year's set of games in the Power Four meant next to nothing.

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Georgia running back Chauncey Bowens (33) runs against Alabama during the second half of a Southeastern Conference championship NCAA college football game, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch (1) celebrates his touchdown against Alabama during the second half of a Southeastern Conference championship NCAA college football game, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Ohio State's Lorenzo Styles Jr. breaks up a pass intended for Indiana's Omar Cooper Jr. during the first half of the Big Ten championship NCAA college football game in Indianapolis, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)