IND-W vs AUS-W, 3rd ODI: Deepti Sharma calls close games against Australia an improvement from the past

Deepti Sharma found herself in the eye of the storm when India lost the second ODI against Australia at the Wankhede Stadium here on Saturday by just three runs.

Deepti Sharma of India in action. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI

Deepti Sharma found herself in the eye of the storm when India lost the second ODI against Australia at the Wankhede Stadium here on Saturday by just three runs. Sent to bat at number six with the Indian chase still in the deep end, Deepti could not get going, scoring just one boundary in her 36-ball innings.

Between the second and third ODI, the Indian team rang in the New Year, and the focus, like anyone making resolutions on January 1, is to look forward.

“Our conversations after the match were restricted to the positives for us from the game and what we can carry forward to the next game. We did get a lot of things right, which we need to continue,” the allrounder said on Monday.

The 26-year-old underlined the positives of a close game.

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“Every team plays to win, it happens sometimes, and it doesn’t sometimes. The good thing is that we ran the Aussies close. It was a good fight. We have improved a lot because our games never used to run this close before whenever we played Australia. We are encouraged by the fact that we can take the game deep, with bat and ball. The winning streak that they have against us, we’ll break it as soon as possible,” she added.

The spunk of the young talent coming into the Indian ranks also gives Deepti hope about the future of Indian cricket.

“It’s not easy to come and play fearless cricket, especially in your first match like Shreyanka (Patil) did. Or the way Richa (Ghosh) batted the other night. These are all positives for us that we will carry forward,” she said.

While the fixture on Tuesday is a dead rubber, Deepti believes there’s plenty to play for, with one major stakeholder being the fans.

“They are quite loud with their support, we can hear them for sure. It feels good, and we get a boost also. It’s nice to know that people have come to watch us, and it fills us with positivity. It motivates us to do well for their sake,” the off-spinner added.