As the Women’s World Cup nears the business end, we take a look at what the sides need to do in order to qualify for the top four. Australia became the first team to qualify for the semi-final after a win against India.

South Africa – 8 points from 4 games

Matches remaining:

March 22, v Australia
March 24, v West Indies
March 27, v India

What they need to do to qualify: The South Africans are only one of two unbeaten teams in the competition, and have all but sealed a spot in the semi-final. They need to win one more game to confirm a top-four berth. Even if they lose all their remaining matches, South Africa will still be in contention, and it will come down, at worst, to Net Run Rate (NRR).

India – 4 points from 5 games

Matches remaining:

March 22, v Bangladesh
March 27, v South Africa

What they need to do to qualify: India still have destiny in their control, with the best NRR among the four teams they are in direct competition with (West Indies, New Zealand, Bangladesh and England). Two wins by decent margins should see them through. If they lose one game, they will have to hope other results go in their favour, including hoping West Indies win no more than one match and New Zealand and England lose at least one game each.

West Indies – 6 points from 5 games

Matches remaining:

March 21, v Pakistan
March 24, v South Africa

What they need to do to qualify: Ranked No.7 in the world, West Indies sprang a surprise when they got the better of the hosts New Zealand in their opener, and then defeated England in their second game. After two heavy defeats, against India and Australia, West Indies got their campaign back on track with a narrow four-run win against Bangladesh. They can directly qualify for the top four if they win their remaining two games. If they lose one and India and New Zealand win both their remaining matches, it will come down to NRR. However, West Indies have a worse NRR (-0.930) compared to India (+0.456) and New Zealand (-0.216).

New Zealand – 4 points from 5 games

Matches remaining:

March 20, v England
March 26, v Pakistan

What they need to do to qualify: The hosts have to win their last two games and get to eight points, and hope other results go in their favour. A best-case result would be two wins and the other sides in the fray (West Indies, India, England and Bangladesh) losing a game apiece. If the points are tied, they will face the stiffest competition from India, who have a better NRR.

England – 2 points from 4 games

Matches remaining:

March 20, v New Zealand
March 24, v Pakistan
March 27, v Bangladesh

What they need to do to qualify: The defending champions could see their campaign come to a premature end if they lose even one game. They can get up to a maximum of eight points by winning the last three matches – and will then have to compete against West Indies and India if the two sides also get to eight points. England’s positive NRR of +0.351 could work in their favour.

Bangladesh – 2 points from 4 games

Matches remaining:

March 22, v India
March 25, v Australia
March 27, v England

What they need to do to qualify: A surprise win over Pakistan, which was also their first win in the history of the 50-over World Cup, has meant that they are not out of the running. The narrow four-run loss against West Indies, though, has made it harder for the Asia side, who now need to defeat higher-ranked sides to qualify.

Pakistan – 0 points from 4 games

Matches remaining:

March 21, v West Indies
March 24, v England
March 26, v New Zealand

What they need to do to qualify: The only side without a win thus far, Pakistan are not yet out mathematically. If they want to qualify, they will have to win their last three games by big margins and hope that neither India, New Zealand, Bangladesh or England have more than six points at the end of the league stage.