INQUIRER STOCK PHOTO
Stiff competition awaits the Philippine Blu Girls, who made their way back to the Women’s Softball World Cup following a top four finish in the Asia Cup which concluded on Saturday in Incheon, South Korea.
The Blu Girls, who ended the continental tournament with a 10-5 loss to Chinese Taipei in a bronze medal match, are set to play host Italy, Asia Cup winner Japan, Canada, Venezuela and New Zealand in Group C of the global tournament that will take place July 11 to 26 in Buttrio.
All five teams are inside the top 30 of the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s world rankings. The Filipino girls, ranked 30th, will need a near-perfect performance to forge upsets.
The top two teams and possibly the third placer of the group—depending on how the results of the other groups play out—will advance to the World Cup’s final stage in 2024 in Italy.
Group A has defending champion United States, group host Ireland, Chinese Taipei, Great Britain, Australia and Botswana while Group B is composed of group host Spain, China, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Netherlands and South Africa.
The Blu Girls scored four runs in the first inning but their offense went silent as the Taiwanese batters came back to eventually secure the podium finish.
The Philippines went 5-3 for fourth in the preliminary round standings to secure a place in the match for third. The tournament initially had a semifinals in place, but the format was changed after Wednesday’s matches were called off due to rain.
It will be the Blu Girls’ seventh trip to the World Cup and their third in the last four editions.