What a finish to the league stage. Chasing a modest 147 to win, Trailblazers were on course until Mandhana was out in the middle. Once she fell, Supernovas applied the chokehold through their spinners. Deepti Sharma and Harleen Deol swung the momentum in Trailblazer's favour with a 50-run partnership, but Radhaa Yadav bowled a brilliant 20th to successfully defend 10 and put the Supernovas into the final. They will take on the Trailblazers on Monday.
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Radha to bowl the final over. Harleen starts with a couple. Single off the next ball. 7 off 4. 6 off 3. Great over so far from Radha. The 50-run partnership comes up. 4 off 2 now. OUT! Harleen holes out! 4 off 1. Supernovas beat Trailblazers. Both are through to the finals.
Selman to bowl the 19th. Deepti welcomes her with a boundary. Make that two in two for Deepti and four on the trot for the Trailblazers. Now a brace - 10 already off the first three. A single off the next ball. Another single. Good comeback from Selman. Two off the final ball. 10 off 6 needed.
Poonam Yadav into the attack, finally. Back-to-back boundaries for Harleen. 11 off that over. Much-needed runs those. TRA 123/4; 24 off the last two.
Radha Yadav continues. Both batters knocking around ones and twos. Supernovas in control at the moment. End of the 17th. TRA 112/4; 35 off 18 needed.
By the way, thanks to their NRR, Trailblazers are through to the finals already. Harman continues. Harleen Deol opens her account with a boundary. Deepti now goes straight down the ground, collects four. TRA 103/4; 44 off 24 needed.
Radha Yadav is back into the attack. The big hits have dried up. The Trailblazers need one big over now. Just ones and twos won't cut it. GONE! Another one bites the dust, Hemalatha has been caught behind. TRA 91/4 after 15 Overs.
Harmanpreet Kaur comes into the attack. Still no Poonam. She started the over well with four dot balls. A single off the fifth. A couple to end the over. TRA 86/3 after 14 Overs. Trailblazers needs 61 runs in 36 balls
Anuja comes into the attack. Poonam Yadav is yet to bowl an over by the way. GONE ! No third time lucky for Smriti, who plays one straight back to the bowler. Dayalan Hemalatha comes to the crease. Excellent from Anuja - just two runs and a wicket. TRA 83/3 after 13 Overs. 4-0-18-1 - Anuja.
Siriwardene into her third. Deepti welcomes her with a boundary - swept away nicely. Smriti's turn now - dances down the track and launches it over long-off. What timing. Good over for the Trailblazers. 12 off it. TRA 81/2 after 12 Overs.
Selman continues. Smriti collects a couple of braces. She is crucial to this run chase. One of these two needs to get a move on. Has to be Deepti you'd imagine. Deepti guides one behind square for four before retaining strike with a single off the last ball. TRA 69/2 after 11 Overs.
Siriwardene continues after the break. Great over so far. Slower through the air with turn on offer. Just two off the first four deliveries. It will remain two for the over. TRA 59/2 after 10 Overs.
Selman to continue. Dot ball first up. Smriti is on strike. She drives the next ball past cover for a single. Dropped. Smriti gets a second life. This time, Priya Punia is the culprit. A single to end the over, four from it. TRA 57/2 after 9 Overs. Time-out. 90 needed off 66 balls.
Shashikala Siriwardene, right-arm off spinner, comes into the attack. By the way, replays suggest the ball would've missed leg-stump. Dottin should have reviewed that! A single to end the over. Five off that over. 50 comes up for the Trailblazers. TRA 53/2 after 8 Overs.
Shakera Selman, right-arm medium pacer, comes into the attack. GONE! Big wicket. Dottin has been adjudged lbw . They opted against the review. Richa Ghosh comes to the crease. Shot. Richa gets off the mark with a lofted drive for four. Gone. Bowled'em. Richa has been cleaned up next ball. Deepti Sharma is in next. TRA 48/2 after 7 Overs.
Anuja continues. Dottin makes room and swats the ball into the vacant region between deep mid wicket and long on. Delicate touch to the short fine region for a double to end the over. TRA 43/0 after 6 overs
The Dottin boundary ensures Trailblazers has qualified for the final!
Radha Yadav into the attack. Dottin with a powerful sweep to square leg for another boundary. Quick single and Smriti could have been caught short there. Her bat got stuck on the surface but Jemimah's throw bounced high and hits the grill of Taniya. Another tossed up delivery, Dottin with another powerful sweep to the deep midwicket for a four. TRA 36/0 after 5 overs
Anuja continues. Smriti drives handsomely through the covers for four. Dropped . Harman has dropped Smriti. Good comeback from Anuja - five dots after conceding a boundary off the first ball. TRA 26/0 after 4 Overs.
Khaka goes short again and Smriti has pulled that away for four. Khaka is all over the place with her line and length. After two dots, she concedes a wide. A single to end the over. TRA 22/0 after 3 Overs.
Anuja Patil comes into the attack. She starts with a wide. Dottin takes a single. Mandhana gets off the mark with a couple. A single later, Dottin plays out a dot. TRA 16/0 after 2 Overs.
Smriti Mandhana and Deandra Dottin to begin the run chase. Khaka with the new ball. Short ball first up, Dottin goes for the pull and misses. Three dots later, Dottin gets hold of one and smokes it for a 78 metre long six. Full toss on the pads, Dottin hammers it away for four. A single to end the over. TRA 11/0 after 1 Over.
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Great effort from Chamari Atapattu, who slammed a 37-ball 50. She was dismissed for 67 off 48. Her efforts were complemented by skipper Harmanpreet whose cameo has pushed Supernovas to 146. Massive props to the Trailblazers bowlers, especially Ecclestone. She bowled a great final over. Trailblazers needs 147 to win.
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Ecclestone to bowl the final over. Siriwardene departs. She is caught short of her crease. Anuja Patil takes a single and gets Harman back on strike. Two dots later, Harman is caught short of her crease - good team effort from Dottin and keeper Richa. Trailblazers have been brilliant in the last couple of overs. A single and a run out off the last ball. Supernovas finish on 146.
Harleen to bowl out. Great effort from Dottin at long-off saves a certain boundary. Two for Kaur, who a ball later, targets the extra cover fence and collects four. Dropped ! Dottin drops Harman, who rushes back for a couple. Harman is switching gears now - hits a six over long-off. A single to end the over. 15 off it. SPN 141/3 after 19 Overs.
Jhulan back into the attack. Jemimah departs. An easy return catch for Jhulan. Shashikala Siriwardene comes to the crease. Both Shashikala and Harman are content with singles at the moment. Clearly, the pitch has slowed down. A wicket and just four. SPN 126/3 after 18 Overs.
Harleen into her third. Kaur hits it to deep cover for a single. GONE! Atapattu departs . Jemimah Rodrigues joins her skipper. She opens her account with a single. She ends the over with a brace - could've been four but for a brilliant stop by Ecclestone. SPN 122/2 after 17 Overs.
Khatun to bowl out. SIX! Atapattu, you beauty. She gets under that one and smokes it over long-on for six. Now a boundary through deep extra cover. Good over for Supernovas. 14 off it. SPN 117/1 after 16 Overs. Time-out! Atapattu's score is the highest for a foreign player in Women's T20 Challenge. Previous best was Dani Wyatt's 46.
Ecclestone is back into the attack. Her first two went for 13. Two off the first four balls. Terrific over so far. She's troubling Harman, is Ecclestone. A dot to end the over. Three from it. SPN 103/1 after 15 Overs.
Khatun into her third. Kaur works it towards mid-wicket for a single. Atapattu now pulls one for a single. Will be interesting to see Atapattu's approach from now on. Four singles off the over. SPN 100/1 after 14 Overs.
Harleen continues. Harmanpreet Kaur is at the crease. She gets off the mark with a quick single. Atapattu has hurt herself at the keeper's end. She is fine now, is Atapattu. She brings up her fifty off just 37 deliveries. Poor effort from Jhulan - should've been able to stop that, instead concedes a four. SPN 96/1 after 13 Overs.
Salma Khatun continues. Atapattu is nearing her fifty. Loud shout for lbw. Not given. Mandhana decides to review. Terrible review, rather desperate. There's a clear edge. Atapattu is safe. OUT ! Punia holes out. What a diving catch that by Deepti. Two runs and a wicket. SPN 89/1 after 12 Overs.
Harleen Deol, right-arm off break, comes into the attack. Punia collects a single to sweeper cover. Harleen going round the wicket vs Atapattu. Atapattu collects a single to backward square before Punia collects a brace. Now Atapattu rushes back for a couple to end the over. SPN 87/0 after 11 Overs.
Salma Khatun comes into the attack. Punia now using her feet unlike the first few overs - driven for a single. Good over that, given how Atapattu has been toying with the attack. Just five off it. SPN 80/0 after 10 vers.
Gayakwad continues. Dottin misjudges a catch at long-off - what's worse? it runs away for four. Punia showing some intent here. Eight from the over. SPN 75/0 after 9 Overs. Time-out!
Ecclestone continues. Dot ball. Make that two in two. Punia is on strike. Stifled appeal for lbw off the third - would've missed the stumps. FOUR ! Punia dances down the track and goes over the top, finds the deep mid-wicket fence. A single next ball gets Atapattu back on strike. Another single to finish. SPN 67/0 after 8 Overs.
Rajeshwari Gayakwad, left arm orthodox, has been brought into the attack. Atapattu and Punia knock around the singles before the former goes big over deep mid-wicket. A single to finish. 11 off the over. SPN 61/0 after 7 Overs.
Sophie Ecclestone, left arm orthodox, comes into the attack. Two dots against Punia. Punia drives down long-on for a quick single. Punia breaks the shackles with a boundary. The 50-run stand comes up with a single off the last ball. SPN 50/0 after 6 Overs.
Jhulan into her third. Errs in line, strays on the pads and Atapattu works it past fine-leg for four. SIX! Atapattu is off and running - what a strike, pulled away for six. Great timing. Freebie - 5 wides. 15 off that over. SPN 43/0 after 5 Overs.
Deepti continues. A tight single off the first ball for Punia. SHOT! Driven down the ground for six by Atapattu. What a shot. Deepti concedes 2 wides next ball. Punia takes a single and gets Atapattu back on strike. The latter once again sweeps Deepti for four. A dot to end the fourth. SPN 28/0 after 4 Overs.
Jhulan continues. Punia drives but finds the fielder. She is yet to get off the mark. Loud appeal for lbw - not given. And they don't review. Rightly so: it was missing leg-stump. Punia drives again and once again, straight to the fielder. Finally opens her account with a single, does Punia. SPN 13/0 after 3 Overs.
Deepti Sharma has been brought into the attack. A dot later, Atapattu collects a brace before collecting a boundary through backward square. And another boundary - this time straight down the ground - to end the over. 10 off the over. SPN 12/0 after 2 Overs.
A dot to begin the proceedings. The ball keeps a little low on that occassion. 1Leg bye off the next ball - hint of movement for Jhulan. Two dots follow. A single to short mid-wicket for Atapattu. Another dot to end the over. SPN 2/0 after 1 Over.
We are all set for action to begin. The pressure will be on Supernovas. They are the two-time champion but are up against a buoyant Trailblazers. Priya Punia and Chamari Atapattu to open for SPN. Jhulan Goswami with the new ball.
TOSS UPDATE : Supernovas have won the toss and elected to bat first.
Trailblazers (Playing XI): Deandra Dottin, Smriti Mandhana(c), Richa Ghosh(w), Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Dayalan Hemalatha, Nattakan Chantam, Salma Khatun, Sophie Ecclestone, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Jhulan Goswami
Supernovas (Playing XI) : Priya Punia, Chamari Athapaththu, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Shashikala Siriwardene, Radha Yadav, Anuja Patil, Shakera Selman, Taniya Bhatia(w), Poonam Yadav, Ayabonga Khaka
We are just 30 minutes away from the toss. Trailblazers will qualify if they win tonight. However, thanks to their splendid Net Run Rate, they can qualify even if they lose to Supernovas. Mithali Raj's Velocity will keep a close eye on this contest.
MATCH PREVIEW
Smriti Mandhana's Trailblazers is almost guaranteed a place in the final, regardless of the result thanks to its superior net run-rate. All it needs to do is avoid a big defeat - READ
Here's a recap of the second match : Mithali Raj's Velocity was bundled out for 47 en route to a nine-wicket defeat against Trailblazers in Sharjah on Thursday. Read the full report here - READ
LAST MEETING BETWEEN TRAILBLAZERS AND SUPERNOVAS:
Trailblazers 140/5 bt Supernovas 138/6 on May 6, 2019.
BUILD-UP
Smriti Mandhana speaks about the changes she’s made to her game and captaining the Indian women’s team - READ
Forced to stay at home due to the COVID19 crisis, Mithali Raj kept herself busy through trips down memory lane and some fitness drills - READ
Karnataka's Anagha Murali, 16, is excited and nervous about competing with stars in the Women's T20 Challenge, while she cites Ravindra Jadeja as her idol - READ
With restricted access to gyms and play on hold indefinitely, Mithali Raj believes next year's World Cup will have no favourites and the race would be wide open - READ
Women's T20 Challenge 2020 Points Table Today
What: Harmanpreet Kaur's Supernovas vs Smriti Mandhana's Trailblazers, 3rd Match
Where: Sharjah
Date – 07/11/2020 | Saturday
Match Start Time – 7:30 PM IST
TV Channel – Star Sports
Online platform – Disney+Hotstar
Complete Squads:
Supernovas Squad : Priya Punia, Chamari Athapaththu, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Shashikala Siriwardene, Pooja Vastrakar, Radha Yadav, Shakera Selman, Taniya Bhatia(w), Poonam Yadav, Ayabonga Khaka, Anuja Patil, Arundhati Reddy, Muskan Malik, Ayushi soni
Trailblazers Squad : Deandra Dottin, Smriti Mandhana(c), Richa Ghosh(w), Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Dayalan Hemalatha, Nattakan Chantam, Salma Khatun, Sophie Ecclestone, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Jhulan Goswami, Punam Raut, Nuzhat Parween, Kashvee Gautam, Simran Bahadur`
Hello and welcome to Sportstar's live coverage of the Women's T20 Challenge 2020 match between Smriti Mandhana's Trailblazers and Harmanpreet Kaur's Supernovas.
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