India began their quest for World Cup qualification with a
resounding 114-run win over Sri Lanka at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo on Tuesday
(February 7). Devika Vaidya, Deepti Sharma and Mithali Raj shone with the bat,
playing vital knocks to propel India to 259 for 4 in 50 overs. The
Deepti-Devika partnership helped India build a solid base from which Raj,
Harmanpreet Kaur and Veda Krishnamurthy could launch. The match itself was a
pretty lop-sided contest, with the hosts slowly losing their way from the
middle of the Indian innings. Although their chase started promisingly, with a
40-run opening partnership between Chamari Atapattu and Eshani Lokusuriyage,
the fight fizzled out slowly as they stuttered their way to 145 for 8.
The star
India pulled a surprise in the fifth over of the day when they sent DevikaVaidya in at No.3, ahead of Mithali Raj. Whether it was because there were two inswingers operating or because Devika was just hitting the ball well in the nets, we will never know, but the move certainly worked. The 19-year old, only playing her second ODI, stroked a fluent 89 to give the innings stability at the start, and impetus in the middle. Those who have seen Devika play in the domestic circuit know that her game is less about power and more about placement and timing. She did that extremely well today, picking up easy singles and also hitting the odd four. What was most impressive about her innings was her ability to hit straight—an area I have seldom seen her score. Her signature sweeps and dabs down to fine-leg were rarely used as the left-hander preferred to wait on the back foot and milk the spinners through cover, and when she chose to take the aggressive route, it was either straight or through mid-wicket—areas the Sri Lankan fielders didn’t have covered. It was a pity she didn’t get a well deserved hundred, but the fact that she got out trying to push the scoring rate was very heartening. Team before self—I certainly like this new India!
India pulled a surprise in the fifth over of the day when they sent DevikaVaidya in at No.3, ahead of Mithali Raj. Whether it was because there were two inswingers operating or because Devika was just hitting the ball well in the nets, we will never know, but the move certainly worked. The 19-year old, only playing her second ODI, stroked a fluent 89 to give the innings stability at the start, and impetus in the middle. Those who have seen Devika play in the domestic circuit know that her game is less about power and more about placement and timing. She did that extremely well today, picking up easy singles and also hitting the odd four. What was most impressive about her innings was her ability to hit straight—an area I have seldom seen her score. Her signature sweeps and dabs down to fine-leg were rarely used as the left-hander preferred to wait on the back foot and milk the spinners through cover, and when she chose to take the aggressive route, it was either straight or through mid-wicket—areas the Sri Lankan fielders didn’t have covered. It was a pity she didn’t get a well deserved hundred, but the fact that she got out trying to push the scoring rate was very heartening. Team before self—I certainly like this new India!
The captain
A couple of overs before Mithali Raj walked in to bat at the P.Sara Oval, the commentators (Ebony Rainford-Brent and David Townsend) were debating whether India should consider sending Harmanpreet Kaur at No.4 to up the scoring rate. With 20 overs left, they said, she would have enough time to settle down and then lift the scoring rate. After all, she was fresh off a successful WBBL where she was scoring at a strike rate of more than 140! To their disappointment though, at the fall of Deepti Sharma’s wicket, with India 132 for 2 in 31.3 overs, Raj sauntered out in her trademark floppy hat. Having opened for her domestic team in the T20 tournament that ended recently, this was not an unfamiliar situation—just another T20 game. From the outset, the ball hit the middle of her bat and she found the gaps with utmost ease. The Sri Lankan bowlers may have allowed her to score through her favorite cover-point area more often than they liked, but it seemed that Raj was simply playing with the field, her unbeaten 69 coming off just 61 balls. Whoever said Mithali Raj can’t up the ante?!
A couple of overs before Mithali Raj walked in to bat at the P.Sara Oval, the commentators (Ebony Rainford-Brent and David Townsend) were debating whether India should consider sending Harmanpreet Kaur at No.4 to up the scoring rate. With 20 overs left, they said, she would have enough time to settle down and then lift the scoring rate. After all, she was fresh off a successful WBBL where she was scoring at a strike rate of more than 140! To their disappointment though, at the fall of Deepti Sharma’s wicket, with India 132 for 2 in 31.3 overs, Raj sauntered out in her trademark floppy hat. Having opened for her domestic team in the T20 tournament that ended recently, this was not an unfamiliar situation—just another T20 game. From the outset, the ball hit the middle of her bat and she found the gaps with utmost ease. The Sri Lankan bowlers may have allowed her to score through her favorite cover-point area more often than they liked, but it seemed that Raj was simply playing with the field, her unbeaten 69 coming off just 61 balls. Whoever said Mithali Raj can’t up the ante?!
The debutante
She may have flown under the radar, but Soni Yadav, the seamer from Delhi who was rushed into the squad as a replacement for Jhulan Goswami, showed some promise today. With the new ball, Yadav got good shape away from the right-handers and bowled at a decent pace. Maybe it was the nerves of an international debut, but she wasn’t nearly as accurate as she normally is on the domestic circuit—bowling on both sides of the wicket and paying the price for it.
She may have flown under the radar, but Soni Yadav, the seamer from Delhi who was rushed into the squad as a replacement for Jhulan Goswami, showed some promise today. With the new ball, Yadav got good shape away from the right-handers and bowled at a decent pace. Maybe it was the nerves of an international debut, but she wasn’t nearly as accurate as she normally is on the domestic circuit—bowling on both sides of the wicket and paying the price for it.
The spin choke
As is customary, every Indian win must involve a ‘spin choke’—that time when the spinners come on and rush through their overs, not conceding too many runs, and the batters don’t know what to do. On Tuesday, the spin choke began in the 10th over of the Sri Lankan innings, with the introduction of Deepti Sharma. Along with Ekta Bisht and Rajeshwari Gayakwad, she dried up the runs, slowly sending the required run rate through the roof. The spin trio quickly settled into a nice rhythm, bowling to their fields on a pitch that didn’t offer too much assistance. It probably helped that the Sri Lankan batters were extremely passive, refusing to use their feet to come down the pitch or play the sweep to throw the bowlers off their line. 30 overs of spin cost India only 58 runs and gave them five wickets.
As is customary, every Indian win must involve a ‘spin choke’—that time when the spinners come on and rush through their overs, not conceding too many runs, and the batters don’t know what to do. On Tuesday, the spin choke began in the 10th over of the Sri Lankan innings, with the introduction of Deepti Sharma. Along with Ekta Bisht and Rajeshwari Gayakwad, she dried up the runs, slowly sending the required run rate through the roof. The spin trio quickly settled into a nice rhythm, bowling to their fields on a pitch that didn’t offer too much assistance. It probably helped that the Sri Lankan batters were extremely passive, refusing to use their feet to come down the pitch or play the sweep to throw the bowlers off their line. 30 overs of spin cost India only 58 runs and gave them five wickets.
In the field
No win, even a really big one, is ever mistake-free. India, although they have improved a great deal over the years, are not the best fielding side on the circuit. On Tuesday too, there were a fair few lapses that they won’t be proud of. The ground fielding was patchy at best, and the catching was well below par. It seemed as though the fielders simply sitting back on the (inner) circle and not attacking the ball to put pressure on the batters.
No win, even a really big one, is ever mistake-free. India, although they have improved a great deal over the years, are not the best fielding side on the circuit. On Tuesday too, there were a fair few lapses that they won’t be proud of. The ground fielding was patchy at best, and the catching was well below par. It seemed as though the fielders simply sitting back on the (inner) circle and not attacking the ball to put pressure on the batters.
If India want to stamp their authority on this tournament,
they will certainly have to lift their intensity in the field. The lapses today
may not have cost them much (although there will be some disappointed bowlers),
but against better teams, these mistakes will certainly hurt. It is not as if
they are not capable of fielding well. They have some wonderful athletes like
Veda, Harman and Deepti to lead the charge, so there is certainly no excuse for
them to slack off in the next game.
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