ODI win puts India in pink of health

Tribune News Service

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Chandigarh, September 28

Two days to go before history is made — for the first time since 2014, the Indian women’s cricket team played a Test match this year, and it only gets better: They will play the year’s second Test from Thursday, and this time it would be a Day/Night Test, the first for India.

And, despite the massive challenge of a D/N Test against hosts Australia at Gold Coast, they would be happy the way some juniors are pushing the seniors. Suddenly, as if out of thin air, India have found an array of talented young players. They’re fearless and possess exciting strokes — just go to YouTube and see the pulls, lofted drives and square drives of Yastika Bhatia or Richa Ghosh.

Richa Ghosh turned 18 today, Shafali Verma will be 18 only next January. Jemimah Rodrigues is decidedly getting on in years at only 21, as is Yastika Bhatia, also 21. Smriti Mandhana, at 25, is definitely elderly. Harmanpreet Kaur is 32, decidedly a didi figure for Richa or Shafali. And what of Jhulan Goswami, 39 this November? Or Mithali Raj, 39 in December?

India’s win in third ODI, after the thrashing in the first match and a mad leap into the jaws of defeat in the second, was a revelation. The Indian women chased a 250-plus total successfully for the first time ever, made possible by the youngsters. Shafali (56) and Smriti (22) provided a great platform; at No. 3, Yastika was confident and strokeful; then, batting at No. 8, Dehradun’s Sneh Rana smacked 30 off 27, and Jhulan completed the job with a four in the last over.

The win should give the Indian women confidence — they were winning for the most part in the second ODI, and kept their cool to win the third.

Different ball game

However, Test cricket will be a different ball game. The pitch at the Metricon Stadium in Gold Coast is expected to be greenish, and India’s young and oldish players would need to be at their best to make a match of it against Australia’s top-class pace attack.

India’s pace attack will be led by Jhulan, the tireless campaigner. “When it is seaming and swinging, you cannot try much and it is just about hitting the right areas. I am really looking forward to the pink-ball Test now, I do not have any experience about it, but I want to gain some experience of pink-ball Test before I quit my cricket,” Jhulan said.

“Before, the pink ball Test, we were able to win one game and we will gain some confidence,” she added.

Australia’s Annabel Sutherland picked Jhulan as the likely threat for the home team. “In the third ODI… Jhulan Goswami with her experience, she was getting the new ball to move. It is an exciting challenge. It will be interesting to see how both fast bowling attacks fare in the game with the pink ball,” Annabel said.

Strong Aussies

Going into the Day/Night Test, it would appear that India have got a very good mix of seniors and youngsters. But women’s cricket is largely limited to limited-overs matches. Women’s Tests are not a priority for any cricket board — only eight women’s Tests were played in the 2010s. New Zealand’s and Pakistan’s women haven’t played a Test since 2004, and Sri Lankan women last played one in 1998.

The Australian women do have experience of Day/Night Test cricket, having figured in the only one played so far, against England in 2017 — Ellyse Perry racked up 213 not out in her team’s 448/9 declared, but England managed to save the game.

India managed to save their Test earlier this year in England. They’d need to bat and bowl out of their skins to be competitive in a Day/Nighter against Australia on their home turf. The youngsters who get to play must rise to the challenge.

Goswami rises to 2nd, Mithali loses top spot

Dubai: India captain Mithali Raj lost her top spot in the ICC women’s ODI rankings for batters as she slid to the third place, while veteran pacer Jhulan Goswami climbed two places to second in the bowlers’ list. South African batter Lizelle Lee grabbed the top spot, while Australia’s Alyssa Healy is at second spot. Smriti Mandhana climbed one place to be at sixth spot. The 38-year-old Goswami’s stellar show during ODI series against Australia took her to second spot. Australia’s Jess Jonassen continued to lead the bowling chart. PTI