Highlights, Australia Women vs India Women 3rd T20I, Full cricket score: Aussies win by 14 runs, seal multi-format series 11-5

Meg Lanning, Australia captain: We were looking forward to it today. We knew India will be coming back hard at us. I think the more we play long-format cricket the better it is for us. India really tested us, and full credit to them. I think Tahlia McGrath being the Player of the Series is great effort. I think there’s been a number of young players shining in this series. I’d like to thank Cricket Australia and the Queensland Government, and sending wishes back to Victoria and New South Wales as well.

Harmanpreet Kaur, India captain: Result wasn’t in our favour, but we’ve still good some very good players like Pooja Vastrakar and Richa Ghosh. Lot of positives we can take and we’re on the right track. We have shown our performance day by day, and that’s what we need as a team, and that’s what we’ve been doing in this tour. We should thank our support staff, they’ve always been there for us whenever we needed them. (On WBBL) I am very excited. Will definitely give by 100 percent. Its a great opportunity for us to grow as a team. If we can get those games before international tournament, that will be great for us.

Tahlia McGrath is the Player of the Match as well the Player of the Series

McGrath: It’s been an unreal series to be a part of. Really grateful to Cricket Australia and to the Queensland government. It was certainly a tough one, and I haven’t played T20 before. But batting is batting. Things are going really well at the moment. We’ve got a very special team and very talented all-rounders. I just keep playing my part. (On partnershp with Mooney) She’s been unreal for me this whole series and real awesome to bat with. She’s had an incredible series herself.

After 20 overs,India Women 135/6 ( Richa Ghosh (W) 23 , Deepti Sharma 9)

AUSTRALIA WIN BY 14 RUNS! They also win the multi-format series 11-5 with a 2-0 victory in the T20I leg as India’s tour ends with back-to-back defeats!

Nicola Carey bowls out the final over, conceding a boundary to Deepti in the first ball followed by a dot and a single. Richa then collects back-to-back sixes with some fine striking, the second one an 80-m hit that almost hit the electronic advertising screen, before collecting a boundary off the last ball, with 21 runs coming off the final over of the innings.

After 19 overs,India Women 114/6 ( Richa Ghosh (W) 7 , Deepti Sharma 4)

Sophie Molineux keeps things tight in her final over of the innings, conceding five in the penultimate over of the chase to leave Ghosh and Sharma with the near-impossible task of having to smash a six off each of the remaining six deliveries of the game to win.

After 18 overs,India Women 109/6 ( Richa Ghosh (W) 5 , Deepti Sharma 2)

Deol’s run out at the start of Sutherland’s third over, making it increasingly difficult for the Indians. Keeper-bat Richa Ghosh collects her firs boundary with a scoop towards fine leg in the fourth delivery. Eight runs and a wicket from the over, with India needing 41 off 12 balls.

OUT! The wickets continue to tumble as Harleen Deol, coming into the XI in place of Yastika Bhatia, getting run out while coming back for a risky second run thanks to a sharp throw from deep midwicket. IND 101/6

Deol run out (Wareham/Healy) 2(4)

After 17 overs,India Women 101/5 ( Richa Ghosh (W) 0 , Harleen Deol 1)

Vastrakar gives India some hope with a boundary at the start of Carey’s third over, but that hope’s snuffed out the very next ball as Vastrakar’s bowled by a full delivery aimed at her leg stump. Six from the over along with the wicket. India need 49 off 18.

OUT! Carey strikes once again, this time dismissing Pooja Vastrakar right after the all-rounder collected her first boundary, rattling her leg stump with a yorker-length delivery. IND 99/5

Vastrakar b Carey 5(3)

After 16 overs,India Women 95/4 ( Pooja Vastrakar 1 , Richa Ghosh 0)

More trouble for the Indians as Sutherland removes Harmanpreet in the penultimate delivery of the 16th over after being brought into the attack in place of Molineux, the India skipper departing for 13 with the hosts once again favourites for victory after a couple of quick dismissals. Two runs and a wicket from this over, with India needing 55 off 24.

OUT! Another fine catch by Lanning, as Harmanpreet departs not long after Mandhana’s dismissal, getting caught while looking to clear extra cover. IND 95/4

Harmanpreet c Lanning b Sutherland 13(16)

After 15 overs,India Women 93/3 ( Harmanpreet Kaur (C) 12 , Pooja Vastrakar 0)

Nicola Carey returns to the attack. Mandhana collects a boundary at the start of the over to bring up her 14th T20I half-century in style, but departs four balls later as she slices the ball towards the covers, where Meg Lanning takes a fine catch running in the opposite direction. Seven runs and a wicket from the over, with Pooja Vastrakar walking out to bat at No 5. India need another 57 off 30.

OUT! Mandhana departs not long after bringing up her half-century as Australia skipper Meg Lanning completes a fine catch near the extra cover region. Nicola Carey with the breakthrough in her second over! IND 92/3

Mandhana c Lanning b Carey 52(49)

FIFTY up for Smriti Mandhana off 46 balls — her 14th half-century in T20Is — as she brings up the milestone with a boundary off Carey at the start of the 15th over! IND 90/2

After 14 overs,India Women 86/2 ( Smriti Mandhana 47 , Harmanpreet Kaur (C) 10)

Nine from Molineux’s third over, including a boundary off the first delivery as Mandhana lofts the ball over mid off, barely clearing the fielder’s outstretched hand, as we enter the business end of the chase with another six overs left. India need another 64 with eight wickets in hand. Partnership between the pair worth 26 so far.

After 13 overs,India Women 77/2 ( Smriti Mandhana 40 , Harmanpreet Kaur (C) 8)

Pressure back on the Aussies in this over as both Mandhana and Harmanpreet collect a boundary each — a first for the latter as the India skipper slog-sweeps towards the square leg fence. Gardner finishes with 1/22. India need 73 off 42.

After 12 overs,India Women 66/2 ( Smriti Mandhana 34 , Harmanpreet Kaur (C) 3)

Tidy start to Annabel Sutherlands spell as the seamer, brought in place of Hannah Darlington for this game, concedes four off her first over, including a leg bye in the penultimate delivery. India need another 84 off 48 balls.

After 11 overs,India Women 62/2 ( Smriti Mandhana 33 , Harmanpreet Kaur (C) 1)

Rodrigues goes for a lofted shot over mid on for a four at the start of the over, collecting her first boundary, but perishes three balls later when looking to go even bigger over mid off as Wareham breaks the second-wicket stand, bringing skipper Harmanpreet Kaur to the crease. Eight runs and a wicket from the 11th over.

OUT! Rodrigues falls while looking for a maximum, as Wareham ends the solid-looking partnership for the second wicket. The Indian No 3 didn’t get enough power on the slog after taking the aerial route over mid off, resulting in a simple catch for Vlaeminck. IND 60/2

Rodrigues c Vlaeminck b Wareham 23(26)

After 10 overs,India Women 54/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 31 , Jemimah Rodrigues 18)

Spin from both ends now with Molineux replacing Carey, with seven coming from the over, including a boundary collected by Mandhana off the last ball as she brings up the fifty partnership with Rodrigues for the second wicket. India need another 96 to win from 60 balls with plenty of wickets in hand.

After 9 overs,India Women 47/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 26 , Jemimah Rodrigues 16)

Tidy over from Ash Gardner as she returns to the attack in place of Nicola Carey, with four singles being added to the Indian total in this over.

After 8 overs,India Women 43/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 24 , Jemimah Rodrigues 14)

Nicola Carey brought into the attack in the eighth over, with Mandhana smacking a length ball towards the midwicket fence in the second delivery as she continues to attack intermittently. Four singles collected in addition to the boundary. India need another 107 off 72 with nine wickets in hand.

After 7 overs,India Women 35/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 18 , Jemimah Rodrigues 12)

Some quick running between the wickets displayed by the current Indian pair as Rodrigues collects back-to-back doubles in the third and fourth deliveriess as leg-spinner Georgia Wareham replaces Tayla Vlaeminck. Seven from the over.

After 6 overs,India Women 28/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 17 , Jemimah Rodrigues 6)

Sophie Molineux brought into the attack for the last over of the powerplay, conceding three from the over including a leg bye. India, meanwhile, are in a relatively better position at the end of the powerplay thanks to the flurry of boundaries for Mandhana in the fifth over. India need another 122 to win from 84 balls.

After 5 overs,India Women 25/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 17 , Jemimah Rodrigues 4)

Mandhana collects the first boundary of the innings at the start of this over, flicking a low full toss from Vlaeminck towards deep square leg. That should given the left-handed opener some confidence after the nervy start, and it shows as she pulls a back-of-length delivery from Vlaeminck towards the midwicket fence three balls later for another boundary. An under-pressure Vlaeminck concedes consecutive wides, before conceding her third boundary of the over to Mandhana, who cuts a short, wide delivery in front of square. 14 off the fifth over, just what India needed to ease the pressure.

After 4 overs,India Women 11/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 5 , Jemimah Rodrigues 4)

Mandhana and Rodrigues have to contend with keeping the scoreboard ticking through singles, with four of them coming in Gardner’s second over.

After 3 overs,India Women 7/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 3 , Jemimah Rodrigues 2)

Another tidy over from Vlaeminck with just two singles coming from it. Australia very much on top of the proceedings from the word ‘go’, having conceded just seven runs from three overs in the powerplay so far while dismissing the explosive Shafali Verma.

After 2 overs,India Women 5/1 ( Smriti Mandhana 2 , Jemimah Rodrigues 1)

Meg Lanning decides to bring in a spinner from the other end, and the move pays dividends for the Aussies as Ashleigh Gardner removes Shafali Verma in her second delivery of the over, Verma pulling a half-tracker down leg straight to the fielder inside the circle. Three runs and a wicket from the over.

Safe to say, Gardner’s delivery that got rid of Verma would normally have been smashed for a boundary

Amongst all the wonderful deliveries that have accounted for wickets this series, there have been plenty of terrible balls that have dismissed batters as well! #NotAllMagical #AUSvIND

— Ananya Upendran (@a_upendran11) October 10, 2021

OUT! Gardner draws first blood for the Aussies as India once again are off to a poor start. Shafali swivels around, looking to target the fine leg fence without accounting for the fielder standing inside the circle. IND 3/1

Verma c Vlaeminck b Gardner 1(3)

After 1 over,India Women 2/0 ( Smriti Mandhana 1 , Shafali Verma 1)

Mandhana gets off the mark with a pull towards fine leg in the second delivery. Shafali opens her account the very next delivery with a single, guiding the ball towards third man. Tidy start from Vlaeminck with two coming from the first over.

We’re back with the chase, with Smriti Mandhana taking strike at the start of the Indian innings as she opens alongside Shafali Verma. Tayla Vlaeminck bowls the first over.

After 20 overs,Australia Women 149/5 ( Tahlia McGrath 44 , Georgia Wareham 13)

Deepti Sharma bowls the final over of the innings. Wareham collects a quick single in the first delivery. Deepti alters her line when she sees McGrath shuffle to her left, bowling close to her body to restrict her to a Solid strike by Wareham in the third delivery as she goes for an inside out slog over mid off for a four, before bringing McGrath back on strike with a single next ball. Single off the fifth delivery. Wareham rushes back for a second run after guiding the ball towards deep square leg in the final delivery, McGrath escaping a run out as Deepti ends up breaking the stumps with her hands rather than the ball.

10 runs conceded from the last over by Deepti as Australia finish on 149/5 after being asked to bat by the Indians. We’ll be back with the chase shortly.

After 19 overs,Australia Women 139/5 ( Tahlia McGrath 42 , Georgia Wareham 5)

McGrath escapes a run out scare in the third ball after a sharp throw from Deepti at mid off hits Shikha near the knee after narrowly missing the non-striker’s stumps. Fine stop by Jemimah at deep point in the fourth delivery to save a couple of runs after a square drive by Wareham. McGrath ends the over with a boundary towards deep third. 10 from the penultimate over of the game.

After 18 overs,Australia Women 129/5 ( Tahlia McGrath 36 , Georgia Wareham 1)

Mooney dances down the track and lofts the ball towards the wide long on fence to begin Gayakwad’s final over of the innings with a boundary. Mooney tries to make it back-to-back fours, but ends up departing for 61 in the very next delivery as Harmanpreet pulls off a stunning catch at extra cover. Georgia Wareham walks in to bat next, getting off the mark with a single right away before McGrath collects the first six of the match with a lofted hit over the bowler’s head, followed by a slog-sweep towards deep midwicket for a four. 16 runs and a wicket from Gayakwad’s final over as she ends with figures of 2/37.

OUT! Harmanpreet grabs a stunner at extra cover after Mooney skips down the crease and goes for an aerial drive as the left-handed opener departs after a well-made 61, with Gayakwad collecting her 2nd wicket in her final over. AUS 117/5

Mooney c Harmanpreet b Gayakwad 61(43)

After 17 overs,Australia Women 113/4 ( Beth Mooney 57 , Tahlia McGrath 25)

Vastrakar returns for her final over. McGrath clears her front leg and smacks a length ball over mid off to start the over with a boundary. Vastrakar though, does well to keep the ball out of her range in the next four deliveries. McGrath connects in the last ball, cutting a wide delivery towards the vacant backward point fence to end the over with a four. Vastrakar signs off with figures of 1/24. Partnership between Mooney and McGrath worth 40 so far.

After 16 overs,Australia Women 105/4 ( Beth Mooney 57 , Tahlia McGrath 17)

Deepti returns in place of Gayakwad as Harmanpreet continues to shuffle her bowlers around. Six from the over, including a boundary to Mooney in the penultimate delivery as she moves to 57, as the Aussies cross the 100-run mark. Another 24 balls left, and the hosts will be hoping to get as close to the 150-mark as possible.

After 15 overs,Australia Women 99/4 ( Beth Mooney 52 , Tahlia McGrath 16)

Renuka concedes a boundary each to Mooney and McGrath in her final over of the innings, with Mooney bringing up her half-century in 36 deliveries in the process, as the seamer signs off with figures of 1/23 from her quota.

Fifty up for Beth Mooney, her 11th in T20Is, as the southpaw drives a full delivery from Renuka through extra cover to collect a boundary! Takes 36 balls to get to the milestone today! AUS 94/4

After 14 overs,Australia Women 89/4 ( Beth Mooney 47 , Tahlia McGrath 11)

One spinner replacers another, as Gayakwad replaces in place of Deepti. McGrath gets down on one knee and sweeps behind square in the fourth delivery, collecting her first boundary in the process. Three singles collected in addition to the boundary, with seven coming from the over.

After 13 overs,Australia Women 82/4 ( Beth Mooney 46 , Tahlia McGrath 5)

Renuka returns, replacing Vastrakar. Mooney and new batter Tahlia McGrath, who played the finisher’s role in the previous game with an unbeaten 42, keep the scoreboard ticking with five singes coming in this over. Mooney’s a hit away from her fifty now.

After 12 overs,Australia Women 77/4 ( Beth Mooney 44 , Tahlia McGrath 2)

Perry departs for 8 as she holes out to Vastrakar while looking to smash the ball over long on for the first maximum of the innings, resulting in the star all-rounder falling victim to Deepti’s off spin for a second consecutive time. Four runs and a wicket from the over, with the Indians clawing back into the game with a flurry of wickets though they still have the threat of an in-form Mooney lurking over them.

OUT! The wickets keep falling at regular intervals for the Aussies! Perry’s the one to fall this time as she steps out of her crease, looking to clear long on but not getting the required distancem resulting in a catch for Vastrakar in front of the boundary. AUS 73/4

Perry c Vastrakar b Deepti 8(11)

After 11 overs,Australia Women 73/3 ( Beth Mooney 42 , Ellyse Perry 8)

Vastrakar continues. Fine stop by Pandey at deep backward point to restrict Perry to a double in the first delivery of this over. Three singles added in the next four deliveries, with four leg byes coming off the last ball as the full delivery from Vastrakar deflects off Mooney’s pad and runs all the way to fine leg.

After 10 overs,Australia Women 64/3 ( Beth Mooney 41 , Ellyse Perry 4)

Deepti Sharma brought into the attack now. Run out scare for Mooney in the first ball as she runs halfway down the track before her call for a single is denied by Perry, the opener just about making it to her crease in the end. Four singles added to the Aussie total in this over with the Aussies collecting 64 runs at the halfway stage.

After 9 overs,Australia Women 60/3 ( Beth Mooney 39 , Ellyse Perry 2)

Change of ends for Vastrakar, and the move works in her favour as she gets rid of Gardner in the third delivery with a fuller delivery that the batter ends up getting a faint edge to. Ellyse Perry walks out to bat next, getting off the mark right away with a brace.

OUT! Now Vastrakar adds her name to the wickets column as Ash Gardner gets a faint nick while looking to drive through the covers. AUS 58/3

Gardner c Ghosh b Vastrakar 1(5)

After 8 overs,Australia Women 58/2 ( Beth Mooney 39 , Ashleigh Gardner 1)

Harmanpreet Kaur decides to introduce herself into the attack in place of Vastrakar, and starts off poorly as Mooney collects three consecutive boundaries to take the hosts past the 50-mark. 14 from the over, with Mooney looking solid on 39 from 24 deliveries.

After 7 overs,Australia Women 44/2 ( Beth Mooney 26 , )

Lanning collects a boundary with a pull in the penultimate delivery, before hitting her stumps with her willow while standing too deep in her crease, looking to cut a short delivery from Gayakwad. She departs for a run-a-ball 14.

OUT! Meg Lanning’s hit wicket. The Aussie skipper pays the price for standing too deep in her crease while looking to cut a back-of-length delivery from Gayakwad. An unlikely end to what was turning out to be a fine second-wicket partnership. AUS 44/2

Lanning hit wicket b Gayakwad 14(14)

Pure timing!

Shot Meg! 😍

We're 1-38 at the six over mark #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/5ysqWYjABv

— Australian Women's Cricket Team 🏏 (@AusWomenCricket) October 10, 2021

After 6 overs,Australia Women 38/1 ( Beth Mooney 25 , Meg Lanning (C) 9)

Change from both ends, with Pooja Vastrakar replacing Renuka Singh. Solid punch by Lanning in the fourth delivery to beat the diving cover, the ball then racing away to the boundary rope to give the Aussie captain her first boundary. Fine effort by Jemimah at extra cover to save a couple of runs for her side after a drive by Mooney. Nine from the over. Australia collect 38 in the powerplay for the loss of Alyssa Healy’s wicket.

After 5 overs,Australia Women 29/1 ( Beth Mooney 22 , Meg Lanning (C) 3)

Spin introduced inside the powerplay as Rajeshwari Gayakwad replaces Shikha Pandey, who went for 13 in her previous over. The left-arm spinner gives away four singles in five deliveries, before Mooney opens the face of her bat to deftly guide the ball towards the third fence off the last delivery. Eight from the over.

After 4 overs,Australia Women 21/1 ( Beth Mooney 16 , Meg Lanning (C) 1)

Tidy over from Renuka to make up for her misfield in the previous over, as she restricts Mooney and Lanning to just the singles, with three of them coming in the fourth over.

After 3 overs,Australia Women 18/1 ( Beth Mooney 14 , Meg Lanning (C) 0)

Pressure’s back on the Indians now as Mooney collects a hat-trick of boundaries off Pandey in the third over, her immaculate timing in the first two aided by a misfield by Renuka at deep backward square leg in the third. 13 from the over, with Mooney keeping the strike with a single off the last ball.

After 2 overs,Australia Women 5/1 ( Beth Mooney 1 , Meg Lanning (C) 0)

Mooney gets off the mark with a single in the third delivery, getting her team off the mark, before Healy collects the first boundary of the innings with a well-timed cut that beats Deepti at cover. Healy though departs the very next delivery as she ends up getting caught behind while looking to edge wide of the keeper towards the third. Out walks Meg Lanning with just five on the board. Chance for India to dictate terms.

OUT! Healy doesn’t quite make the most of the lifeline handed to her after escaping an LBW appeal as she departs in the very next over, getting a thick edge to get caught-behind off Renuka’s bowling. Keeper Richa Ghosh fumbled for a bit, but managed to hold on to it in the end. AUS 5/1

Healy c Ghosh b Renuka 4(8)

After 1 over,Australia Women 0/0 ( Alyssa Healy (W) 0 , Beth Mooney 0)

Shikha seems to have picked up from where she left off, keeping Alyssa Healy on the back foot in this over with a set of testing deliveries, getting prodigious swing early on. Appeals for LBW against Healy in the fifth delivery, though the umpire turns it down, perhaps thinking it’s a tad high. Remember, no DRS in this series, and there sure were a couple of howlers along the way. Maiden to start things off for Pandey. Replays later confirm the ball to be angling into the top of middle, and it seems Pandey would’ve won the contest against Healy for a second game running had the organisers provided DRS in this series.

Shikha Pandey gears up to bowl the first over as Alyssa Healy takes strike as usual, walking out to open the innings in the company of Beth Mooney.

India XI: Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Harleen Deol, Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Shikha Pandey, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Singh

Australia XI: Alyssa Healy (wk), Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning (c), Ellyse Perry, Ashleigh Gardner, Tahlia McGrath, Nicola Carey, Georgia Wareham, Annabel Sutherland, Sophie Molineux, Tayla Vlaeminck

Harmanpreet Kaur: That’s what we were looking for from day one. In place of Yastika Bhatia, Harleen Deol comes in.

Meg Lanning: We were going to bat anyway, so went pretty well for us. Annabel Sutherland comes in for Hannah Darlington.

TOSS: India win the toss, and Harmanpreet Kaur opts to bowl

“Whichever team bats first, reaching 170-180 will be a bit difficult. Maybe a score of 150-160 would be a par score here because of the slow nature. Also scoring under lights is not an easy proposition. Dew also plays a big factor. You need to have the cushion of 10-15 mins,” says cricketer-turned-commentator Saba Karim in the talk show on Sony Sports Network before toss.

Harmanpreet rues absence of women’s IPL

After their fightback in the second and third ODIs, their dominance in the one-off Test and their positive batting display in the first T20I, India could never quite cope with the pressure exerted by the Aussies in the 2nd T20I on Saturday as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals to be restricted to 118/9. Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, who’s in action in the tour for the first time in the T20 leg, brought up the topic of the women’s Indian Premier League (IPL) and how the BCCI’s continued efforts towards creating a tournament like the one for men’s cricket would have helped her side deal with pressure better.

The BCCI had earlier been organising the Women’s T20 Challenge alongside the IPL which featured three teams — the Supernovas, the Trailblazers and Velocity — but decided against hosting it this year. India’s solid performances of late have only served to bolster the growing demand for the BCCI to organise a full eight-team IPL for the women’s game just like Cricket Australia does with its BBL, for the Indian team to truly be at par with sides such as Australia and England.

Shikha’s ‘Ball of the Century’ makes waves!

Despite the disappointment of the four-wicket defeat, the match will be remembered by the Indians for the pearler from Shikha Pandey that dismissed Alyssa Healy in just the second delivery of the Australian chase. The dismissal was all the more special given it gave Indians hope of defending the lowly score that they put up, as a batter as explosive as Healy could’ve turned it into a cakewalk had she got into her element.

“We fought till the end (but) would want the team to take more responsibility.”

Things didn’t quite work out for the Indians on Saturday, especially on the batting front as they suffered a collapse while trying to exhibit intent, and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur made it clear after the four-wicket defeat that she’d expect more responsibility from her side as they hope to sign off on a high at the end of their tour of Australia.

Read: Harmanpreet Kaur wants team to take more responsibility after series loss

Welcome to our live coverage of the third T20I between Australia and India at the Carrara Oval in Gold Coast, which will be the final game of India’s tour of Australia as Harmanpreet Kaur and Co look to end their trip on a high after having already conceded the multi-format series to the hosts.