 "Women's T20 World Cup 2024: India's clinical bowling display key to beating Pakistan but concerns over batting persist")
After being dealt a rude shock by New Zealand on Friday, Team India picked itself up in no time and fought back impressively against arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday to revive their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup campaign. The 58-run thrashing at the hands of the White Ferns on Friday left a massive dent not just on India’s Net Run Rate (NRR) but also on the team’s morale.
There had been a lot riding on this group of players and their ability to finally deliver India its maiden ICC title after years of heartbreaks, especially since these players had also played two seasons of the Women’s Premier League and had rubbed shoulders with some of the best players from across the world.
As It Happened | India vs Pakistan, ICC Women’s T20 World Cup match in Dubai
The abject surrender against the Kiwis, with ball and all the more so with the bat, nearly dashed those hopes. But the fightback against their subcontinental neighbours gives fans back home reason to believe they can still sneak into the knockouts from here and pull off something special in the end.
Or at the very least, fly back home with their heads held high rather than drooping with disappointment.
So where exactly did things go right for Team India in their blockbuster clash against Pakistan in Dubai on Sunday? The Lion’s share of the credit for that would have go to the bowling department.
Reddy, Patil set things up nicely for Women in Blue
India returned to the venue where they had been humbled 48 hours earlier, only this time they arrived from the team hotel with a sense of determination.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsAnd that determination was evident in the manner in which they set the tone in the very first over of Pakistan’s innings after they won the toss and skipper Fatima Sana opted to bat.
On Friday, Kiwi openers Suzie Bates and Georgia Plimmer looked unstoppable against the Indian attack and managed to bat through the powerplay, amassing 55 runs in six overs, with their stand eventually worth 67.
Renuka Singh Thakur, who was the pick of the Indian bowlers on Friday with figures of 2/27, struck in the very first over of the Pakistan innings as she got the ball to jag back in sharply, breaching Gull Feroza’s defence and crashed into the stumps.
The pacer from Himachal Pradesh would prove somewhat expensive in her following over, going for 12 runs including a boundary to wicketkeeper-opener Muneeba Ali. India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur responded to the situation quickly enough by taking her off and bringing in Arundhati Reddy in the following over while operating with spin from the other end.
Pakistan tried breaking the shackles early on, but could not. The Indians refused to give them any breaching space and restricted them to 29/2 at the end of the powerplay, 26 fewer than what New Zealand had managed at the same stage the other day.
And it wasn’t just the manner in which they began but how they finished the job with the ball in hand that went a long way in deciding the fate of the game.
Seamer Arundhati Reddy and leg-spinner Shreyanka Patil deserve the lion’s share of the credit on this front. While Reddy created more chances than any other bowler and could have bagged a five-for had a couple of catches not been dropped off her bowling, Patil fared brilliantly in her role of drying up runs in the middle overs, including with a wicket-maiden in the 10th over.
Had it not been for all-rounder Nida Dar’s handy knock of 28 off 34 deliveries, Pakistan might not have even crossed 100.
Concerns over batting still persist
A match, however, cannot be won by one department alone as the opening day’s fixture between Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Sharjah would suggest. Sri Lanka had bowled Pakistan out for 116, only to crumble in the face of an inspired bowling performance from Sana and Co led by left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal and her haul of 3/17.
Indian openers Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana too found scoring difficult on Sunday. Not only was the wicket bang at the centre of the ground, meaning there wasn’t a short square on one side that could be exploited by a batter. And Mandhana departed in a rather soft manner as she chipped the ball straight to point, departing for 7.
India, however, remained calm despite losing Mandhana inside the powerplay. Against the Kiwis, it wasn’t just their poor shot selection but the scoreboard pressure that led to such shots being played that resulted in the Women in Blue crumbling like a house of cards.
On Sunday, chasing just 106 to win, the Indian dugout knew they were one big partnership away from sealing the contest. And it was the pair of Shafali and Rodrigues that delivered that moment of magic in the form of a 43-run second wicket stand, and from thereon, it was India’s game to lose.
However, while India had shown great improvement on Sunday, their NRR remained a worry, especially when looking at their numbers on the points table. And with Verma and Rodrigues laying the foundation for the win with their partnership, India perhaps could have shown a bit more urgency and looked to wrap things up with three-four overs to spare.
It certainly was important for India to collect a ‘W’ on Sunday in order to keep their campaign alive. But those wins might ultimately count for nothing if the team fails to finish among the top two in their group, and thereby progress to the semis.
India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana admitted their approach with the bat could have been a little better.
“As a bowling unit, we were very disciplined and in the field we were good too. We could have done with a better start with the bat, but we will take this.
“We were thinking about it (Net Run Rate) but me and Shafali weren’t able to time it well. So we didn’t want to get to a place where we were chasing the game, but NRR is surely in our heads. This game will give us some momentum and hopefully we can keep going in this tournament,” Mandhana, who filled in for the injured Harmanpreet, said during the post-match presentation ceremony.
The Women in Blue face Sri Lanka three days from now in their third group fixture in Dubai before squaring off against defending champions and six-time winners Australia next Sunday. For Harmanpreet and Co, not only will they be hoping to win both games, they will also be hoping at least one of them is the sort of dominant victory that takes their NRR into the positive.
Otherwise, the campaign could end up just like it has in previous editions of Women’s ODI and T20 World Cups — with a heartbreak. And this one might just end up leaving a worse taste in the mouth.
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