Welcome to the highlights of the 2nd T20I between India Women and South Africa Women from the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow.
Summary: A nervy run chase which saw both teams locking horns for an advantage came right down to the wire. This chase had everything. Big hits, dropped catches, a boundary shower, crucial wickets and last over drama, with the possibility of a super over even! Lizelle Lee's 45-ball 70 and Laura Wolvaardt's 39-ball 53 took the South Africans through. This is South Africa's first T20 series win against India and it came in the most appropriate fashion. That's all from us for the second T20I. Do join us for the third and final game between these two sides on Tuesday. Take care, mask up.
Laura Wolvaardt:
I didn't start my innings as quickly as I would have liked. With the quick outfield, I knew we'd be able to do it if we took the game deep enough. The responsibility is stressful but I think it'll do me good in the long run.
Sune Luus: Our confidence levels are where we want them to be. Our girls are playing fearless cricket and that's what we want. I think it's good for our future. If we can't play Kapp, Shabnim or Lizelle, we know we have the players to come out and play and win like this. It's amazing to see them improve like this. We have a chance to make it 3-0 and that would be bigger than the series win.
Smriti Mandhana:
80 percent of the time it was our game but we couldn't pull it off. We didn't deserve to win this game. We need to keep working on our fielding. Our batters did well today, the way the youngsters batted and built partnerships. A lot of positives and a lot of things to work on. We can't keep using (lack of game time) as an excuse. There will be an odd match where we will get it right and good times will follow.
Let's here it from the skippers before we wrap up for the day.
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South Africa 159/4 after 20 overs: Arundathi with the ball.
De Klerk does well to run the single and get Wolvaardt on strike. Full in length but de Klerk is taking no risks. Second ball - dot. She comes down the pitch but misses completely and scurries back to stay in the crease. Third ball - single. This brings de Klerk to the crease. Slower deliveries these and they have unsettled the South Africans. Fourth ball - de Klerk goes slightly aerial here. Just a single though. Brilliant stuff from Arundathi. OH BUT ARUNDATHI what have you done! NO BALL. Wolvaardt punches a high ball down for a single but SA has the extra ball and has run two. Another two runs for Wolvaardt as she goes straight down the ground. Scores level. Wolvaardt looks towards short fine leg and a dangerous inside edge here. The fielder collects the ball and throws it to the keeper who has not collected the ball. The Proteans have done what they need to, one run in the bag, series in the bag. SA wins by 6 wickets and takes an unassailable 2-0 lead in the T20s.
South Africa 150/4 after 19 overs: Harleen gets the ball. What a gamble. Crucial over this with the series on the line. First ball - MDP is beaten. Second ball - MDP clips to Deepti Sharma in the deep and GONE! The gamble has worked and the crowd is on its feet. What cricket they are getting to watch here. Nadine de Klerk comes in. Third ball - single. Fourth ball - single - this is great from India. Keeping it very tight, but Wolvaardt is not to be underestimated here. She has pulled out, found the gap through square leg. The final ball - encore. The ball beats Mandhana who is not as fast as we know her to be , and we have a boundary down short fine leg. Nine off six needed.
South Africa 140/3 after 18 overs: Radha Yadav is here again.
India has to stem the boundary flow. A dot ball and a single to start. Very lovely running between the wickets despite the ball just going to the 30 yard circle, but Radha Yadav seems to have sprained her ankle while trying to get before the stumps to help a possible run out. This is not good news for India. Can she complete this over? Radha just removed Lee, her 50th T20 scalp and India will need her to stand a chance in this game. And yes she continues. Nuzhat Parveen is giving her all the encouragement she needs from behind the stumps. The ball turns with the bounce of the pitch and Parveen effects the stumping. Clean delivery. MDP is off her crease but quite a bit, she swings and misses and almost swings back into the crease just before the bails come off. Such drama here at the Ekana Stadium. Very quick running between the wickets here and the Proteas need 19 off the last two.
South Africa 123/3 after 17 overs: South Africa is enjoying taunting Deepti Sharma with first ball boundaries. Wolvaardt this time with some remarkable footwork to drive this one towards extra cover. The over now follows template. Starts off with a four, quiet for the rest of the over but du Preez compensates in the final ball, a full toss. This one goes over the bowler's head.
South Africa 123/3 after 16 overs: Radha Yadav into the attack and instant impact. Lizelle Lee has clipped that upwards and it's gone very high with barely any distance. Yadav is waiting beyond the umpire and goes down with the ball safely in her hands to send Lee back. A magnificent 70 from the Protean opener. Mignon du Preez comes in. Can MDP and Wolvaardt seal the series for the visitor? They might just if the fielding has so many holes. Wolvaardt sweeps the penultimate delivery of the over towards square leg and Arundathi is there but the ball spins the other way and races down to the boundary.
South Africa 116/2 after 15 overs: Lovely sweep from Wolvaardt to start off. The ball runs to deep square leg but there's a fielder there. Ensuring the fielders are in the right spot is what Smriti Mandhana's biggest challenge of the night seems to be. Deepti comes into the stumps now and was that an edge? The bowler is appealing. The keeper is appealing. Mandhana? Well there's a half-hearted appeal. The umpire is unmoved.
42-run stand between these two now. Deepti Sharma comes in.
South Africa 108/2 after 14 overs: Is Lizelle Lee playing golf at the Ekana Stadium? She has sent one over the fence for a maximum. She is the thrust behind the shot here creating all that power herself. Arundathi, who is coming in from the other end, cannot appreciate this shot. Wolvaardt matches power with placement, opening the bat face late to send that down to cover. It's World Poetry Day and this is poetry in motion from Wolvaardt.
South Africa 95/2 after 13 overs: Gayakwad in for her last over. Two heart-in-the-mouth moments for South Africa as a runout risk faces Wolvaardt and Lizelle Lee finds Richa Ghosh at cover. A potential direct hit comes late and misses, with Wolvaardt making it safely back in time. Ghosh stretches as much as she can to pocket that shot from Lee but it's too high for her. Hard chance but she's saved her side three runs here. Wolvaardt compensates with a strong shot to cover. Four runs, a diving Ghosh notwithstanding. The fielding Gods have not been kind to Ghosh this evening.
South Africa 88/2 after 12 overs: Harleen Deol comes back in. Misfield from Simran Bahadur gives South Africa three runs but Lee is not happy with leaving so much to chance and clobbers one straight through Harleen's raised hands to the boundary. She follows it cutting the ball fine for another boundary. Confusion ensues next between the two batters as a thick edge from Wolvaardt goes towards short third man. Lee is already making her way across to the striker end while Wolvaardt is caught distracted. She quickly makes her way to safety. No damage done. Phew.
South Africa 72/2 after 11 overs: 12th half century for Lizelle Lee.
She has been in the driver's seat all through and an absolute delight to watch. Another lifeline given and this time the beneficiary is Laura Wolvaardt. A caught and bowled opportunity seemingly seems to fall short of Gayakwad but replays suggest it was well within her reach. Missed opportunity here.
South Africa 72/2 after 10 overs: Drama and teamwork. Jemimah Rodrigues saves a boundary straight down the pitch and passes the ball on to Deepti who manages a direct hit which incidentally finds Luus short of her crease. Player down for SA, glee for India. Wolvaardt comes to join Lee who is in no mood to stop. She sends the ball racing down covers for a four.
South Africa 64/1 after 9 overs: Simran sends down a short one. Lee thanks her graciously by dispatching this with almost no effort to deep square leg. Fifty partnership comes up with this duo. They've done well to steady the ship in a crunch situation. South Africa is rotating the strike well when boundaries aren't coming in. Good batting from the visitors, smart running between the wickets. India can and should take notes.
South Africa 56/1 after 8 overs: OHH. LIFELINE for Lizelle Lee. Richa Ghosh has dropped the dangerous Protean at deep square leg. It's not the easiest of catches and Ghosh is livid. Radha recovers, keeping Lee quiet and even getting one going excruciatingly close to the stumps. Lee compensates by sweeping a straight one to deep square leg. Richa Ghosh there again, gets to it but ends up pushing it to the rope. Shoddy from India.
South Africa 49/1 after 7 overs: Simran Bahadur comes in, hunting for her first international wicket. Encouraging start from the newcomer as she manages to find some deviation here against Lee. A single and a dot ball to begin. Lee then sends one down short third man but a diving Radha Yadav saves three runs. Another three runs saved as Mansi Joshi, in as a substitute, at short third man stops another potential boundary from Lee. Just one run given. However, all's well that ends well though as Luus makes up for the saves with a boundary through cover.
South Africa 41/1 after 6 overs: Radha Yadav comes into the attack. The spinners have got their line all wrong tonight. She sends one down leg and Lee does the hours sweeping it to the boundary. She recovers well to ensure just five runs come off the over, which wraps up the powerplay too.
South Africa 32/1 after 5 overs: Lee welcomes Deepti Sharma with a neat boundary between long on and deep midwicket. Loves spin, Lee. Deepti has had a chat with Smriti and wants more protection on the off side. Will it help? I was just typing that Deepti has recovered well to get a few dot balls after that boundary but Lee will not be bested. She uses the short ball to dispatch one between mid off and covers. Looking to finish things off quietly, Deepti goes down the line. Easy pickings for Lee as gets down on one knee and lovingly sweeps it fine.
South Africa 24/1 after 4 overs: Rajeshwari Gayakwad returns and a midwicket fielder is waiting for Lee to make an error and hole one out there. Gayakwad is also trying to test her to go aerial but Lee sweeps it fine here for a boundary. Bad line from Gayakwad. Punished. Luus joins in, cutting one down to square leg. Sublime, minimal sound from the bat. Full impact.
South Africa 14/1 after 3 overs: The Indians have managed to keep Lizelle Lee quiet today. Very slow start from the visitors, clearly under pressure after that first wicket and it's showing in Lee's demeanour. But Luus is here to offer her assurance and that's what she does as she sends one flying over gully for four.
South Africa 8/1 after 2 overs:
Ohh missed the stumps there Simran Bahadur as she tried to get Bosch run out here. The momentary panic though is enough to rattle Bosch whose bad luck continues tonight as she finds her stumps completely rattled by Rajeshwari Gayakwad. After two player of the match awards, it's been a dull day for her. In comes Sune Luus.
Anneke Bosch b Gayakwad 2
South Africa 7/0 after 1 over: Arundathi Reddy leads the Indian bowling performance, starting strong with one in line with the middle stump, but pitches it up in the second ball. A little width and Lizelle Lee makes no mistake sending it over cover for a four. She is so confident and in her element, flicking the next ball squarish to the boundary, getting just a run for the effort though. Arundathi bowls a tight one to Anneke Bosch who can do nothing but defend with the front face of the bat. Bosch may have had an ordinary day on the field but she's down on one knee and has sent that going towards cow corner. Just two runs though. Neat 7-run over here.
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SUMMARY: A spirited batting performance from the Indian side as they looked like they had the South African arsenal bested as a unit for the first time in this tour. Put in to bat, an uncomfortable Smriti Mandhana threw away her wicket early, but Shafali Verma and Harleen Deol more than steadied the ship for India, dealing in boundaries during their 79-run stand for the second wicket. Shafali found her stumps rattled just three runs short of a deserved half century. Richa Ghosh later kept the run rate steady, scoring an unbeaten 26-ball 44 in the process helping India to 158 in the process. Would the host have wanted maybe 10 runs more? Yes. Will this be enough to level the series? Might just be, but that will depend on what the bowlers bring to the table. Stay with us to find out.
India 158/4 after 20 overs: A Richa Ghosh blitzkrieg has taken India to 158/4 at the end of 20 overs! Shabnim Ismail nearly caps Richa as she the outside edge slips past Jafta to the third-man boundary. Richa cashes in with another snorter of a hit down the ground. Ismail, however, returns with two excellent slower balls that beats Richa to finish the Indian innings.
Are there two ways about this?
India 136/4 after 18 overs:
Ismail manages to keep Deepti quiet before a loose short ball is pulled it to deep midwicket for a boundary. The run rate has taken a hit and with three overs to spare, the batters would just go for it now.
India 130/4 after 17 overs: de Klerk to Jemimah. OUT! Jemimah perishes after a failed attempt to scoop the ball. One wonders why Jemimah would attempt that when the runs have come off all the conventional strokes. Perhaps, the fine leg brought into the circle would have tempted but only to gift a catch to keeper. Jemimah Rodrigues c †Jafta b de Klerk 16 (15b 2x4)
India 126/3 after 16 overs: These are some stars in the making! Bosch is creamed for a classic slice past backward point. It is her partner that races the bar with another sizzling cut and India is primed to cross 150 here now!
India 114/3 after 15 overs: Khaka has been in top-notch today! Just the two runs off her over as she continued to attack the stumps with some incisive precision.
India 112/3 after 14 overs: The prodigious Richa Ghosh begins her innings in style! Skipper Luus is taken apart with three boundaries by Richa as she begins her innings with hardly any nerve. Her confidence rubs off on Jemimah as well as she puts a full toss from the SA skipper to the deep midwicket boundary. A potentially game-changing over this one!
India 94/3 after 13 overs: Bosch to Harleen. OUT! Harleen holes out to long-on as India loses two in quick time! The pressure getting to her and Harleen goes for the long slog and fails to time it. Shabnim Ismail has some easy time holding on to it as India loses the well-set Harleen. Harleen Deol c Ismail b Bosch 31 (31b 4x4)
India 91/2 after 12 overs:
Excellent start from skipper Luus as she concedes just four runs. This is the phase where SA can cash in with the new batter Jemimah hoping to bide some time before taking on the bowlers.
India 87/2 after 11 overs: Mlaba to Shafali. OUT! Mlaba cleans up the stumps! Excellent comeback from the left-armer after Verma tonked her for a massive six over cow corner. Mlaba was quick to correct her length and pushed the wicket taking delivery further up as Shafali continued to shuffle between middle and leg. Verma attempted to flick it but ended up missing the ball altogether. Nevertheless, this has been a brilliant innings from the young powerhouse. Shafali Verma b Mlaba 47 (31b 6x4 2x6)
India 79/1 after 10 overs: A massive over for India as Shafali and Harleen find the boundary! de Klerk is under pressure as she begins the over by gifting a wide that races to the third man fence and India well and truly on the driver's seat here.
India 65/1 after 9 overs: India is playing it smart with runs flowing at a decent rate as well. Shafali shows her crafty side as she aces a beautiful cut off Mlaba to the boundary and plays the strike around for the rest of the over.
India 57/1 after 8 overs: Harleen races India past 50 with two delectable shots! She welcomes Anne Bosch into the attack with a wristy flick past square and adds another boundary right at the other with a juicy cut past point. India has maintained a lot of positivity despite losing its captain.
India 46/1 after 7 overs: Mlaba is unlucky to scoop a wicket as Shafali is dropped at long-on! The ball turns away as Shafali steps out and the leading edge lobs through the air to Bosch who runs in from the fence but misses it.
India 41/1 after 6 overs: Shafali is on fire! Some imperious touch graces the Ekana stadium as Shafali stomps de Klerk over the long-off field for a sizzling boundary and follows it up with a glorious six - a biggie to finish the powerplay or India!
India 31/1 after 5 overs:
Khala continues to attack the stumps and concedes just six runs. However, a classical cut from Harleen has brought one boundary which would help her confidence.
India 25/1 after 4 overs: Shafali revs up with three boundaries! Ismail is bogged down as her teammate's misfield at mid-on helps Verma crack her first boundary. Shafali follows up with a drilled-out shot from yorker length through extra cover. Ismail checks one in short next and the dashing Shafali barely manages to pull it down the ground over the mid-on fielder to the boundary. Big over for India.
India 13/1 after 3 overs: Khaka begins with some accurate bowling that has keep the dashing Shafali and Harleen quiet. The Proteas are peaking well once again.
India 9/1 after 2 overs: Ismail to Mandhana. OUT! Edged and taken. South Africa has picked up the Indian skipper early!
This has been a streaky start from Mandhana as she had mistimed two shots already that could have presented itself as a chance, nearly. Mandhana goes for the expansive drive, well away from her body and Ismail gets the thick outside edge. Jafta the keeper leaps to her left and completes an excellent catch as India finds itself in troubled waters once again.
Smriti Mandhana c †Jafta b Ismail 7 (9b 1x4)
India 6/0 after 1 over: A quiet over with the sole boundary leaking from Mlaba as she fends the odd ball short. Mandhana has all the time in the world as she rocks back and it lobs it over the mid-off fielder to the boundary.
SA to begin with spin as Nonkululek Mlaba will open the bowling.
We are ready for action, folks! Indian openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma walk out to the middle as Sune Luus leads her side to the field.
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Pitch Report: This is a red soil surface on display tonight. Certain patches of the red sand peaks up through the grass and it could well mean that the spinners would be in the game. The pitch is certainly on the slower side tonight but with the pitch retaining its firmness and batting would not be as difficult as it might seem to be.
TOSS: South Africa has won the Toss and elected to field
6:10PM: India - South Africa H2H:
Last 5 matches: IND won - 2, SA won - 2, NR - 1
5:55PM: Will Bosch be the thorn in India's hopes once again?
5:50PM: Ahead of the all-important clash, here are some interesting numbers:
1st T20I preview
In its first T20I since the forgetful T20 World Cup final last year, India led by Harmanpreet Kaur, set off on the wrong foot. Despite a closely fought ODI series, the host found itself reeling in a 4-1 loss.
India, who was desperate to begin well, was put down by another all-round performance by the Proteas. After sending in India to bat, South Africa dealt an early blow as Smriti Mandhana perished for 11. Comeback opener, Shafali Verma began on a high and looked set to pace the Indian innings, but fell soon after. India's new no.3, Harleen Deol, set herself up patiently despite the Proteas chipped in with regular wickets around her. Harleen's 52 off 47 took India past 100, but a relentless display from the visitor meant that it restricted India to a paltry 130/7.
In reply, SA opener Anneke Bosch, who also scalped two wickets earlier, blazed the Indian bowlers from the start despite the in-form Lizelle Lee falling early. India, who went spin-heavy once again, failed to dent the Proteas even as they managed to stretch the match onto the final over.
With the 2nd T20I steaming on the fast lane the very next day, India who also had lost Harmanpreet Kaur to injury during the 1st T20I, will have to make and smart changes in plan in order to salvage the series by stretching it to the final T20I.
WHAT THEY SAID
Anneke Bosch: "It feels like a deja vu. To do it again is unbelievable. [Player of the Match in the final ODI as well] Sune and I were trying to keep the required rate under seven. That was the plan. I don't mind the captain didn't give me more than two overs. I am happy."
When does the match begin:
March 21, 7 pm IST
Where to watch:
India Women vs South Africa Women T20Is will be live on Star Sports 2 (and HD) and Star Sports 3 (and HD). The India Women vs South Africa Women ODIs will also be streamed online on Disney+Hotstar.
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