Women's T20 Challenge 2019, Supernovas vs Velocity Today's Match Preview: Trailblazers have been knocked out after having only won the tournament's opening game against Supernovas. Mithali and Veda put up a 53-run partnership, and as soon as the team went past 117, it was all but confirmed that these two teams would meet again in the final on Saturday.
Having struggled their way to victory on Wednesday, all Velocity need is two points to secure a summit clash against Trailblazers, who beat Supernovas in the tournament’s opening encounter.
Meanwhile, should Supernovas win on Thursday, then all the three teams will have two points each and the net run-rate will decide on which two teams go through.
After restricting Trailblazers to 112-6, things started on a powerful note for Velocity, who were on the verge of a comfortable victory at 111/2 before losing five wickets without adding a run.
This was when the Trailblazers gained momentum for a short period of time, until Sushree Pradhan sealed the match with two overs to spare.
On a day when the Trailblazers showcased some sloppy fielding, Velocity’s batting line-up was tested after they lost five wickets in the space of seven balls.
Mithali will be expected to deliver on Thursday. The 36-year-old only managed to score 17 runs before being dismissed by Deepti Sharma in the 18th over.
However, one positive sign for the new team is that of Ekta Bisht, who enjoyed an economical spell of 2-13. The 33-year-old has an economy of 5.30 in T20Is and has best figures of 4-21.
The Supernovas, too, will have questions to be answered, especially after their gradual collapse to 138-6 from 55-2 as they fell short by three runs against Trailblazers.
Harmanpreet was impressive in Supernovas’ previous match after remaining unbeaten on 46, and without a doubt she will play a pivotal role under pressure to help them qualify for the final.
Supernovas and Velocity full squads
Supernovas: Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Anuja Patil, Arundhati Reddy, Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka), Jemimah Rodrigues, Lea Tahuhu (New Zealand), Mansi Joshi, Natalie Sciver (England), Poonam Yadav, Priya Punia, Radha P Yadav, Sophie Devine (New Zealand), Taniya Bhatia (WK).
Velocity: Mithali Raj (Captain), Amelia Kerr (New Zealand), Danielle Wyatt (England), Devika Vaidya, Ekta Bisht, Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Jahanara Alam (Bangladesh), Komal Zhanzad, Shafali Verma, Shikha Pandey, Sushma Verma (WK), Sushree Dibyadarshini, Veda Krishnamurthy.
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