From Vastrakar’s evolution to Mandhana’s purple patch, India ticks most of the boxes as T20 World Cup looms

With the Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh just under three months away, India’s recent outing against South Africa at home was revelatory in more ways than one.

Pooja Vastrakar and Radha Yadav were impressive in India’s recent multiformat tour against South Africa | Photo Credit: PTI

With the Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh just under three months away, teams are stepping up their preparation.

India’s recent outing against South Africa at home was revelatory in more ways than one. The persistent Achilles heel — fielding — haunted it once more in the three-match T20I leg against the Proteas, a disciplined bunch on the field.

In the first T20I (South Africa eventually won by 12 runs), in-form batters Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp were allowed reprieves. Tazmin Brits, who struggled to time the ball in the first half of her innings, was allowed to claw her way to a career-best 81, eventually falling off the last ball of the innings.

Harmanpreet Kaur was honest in her assessment. “We weren’t good enough. We dropped chances that gave away at least 20 runs,” she pointed out. Fielding and fitness were the main pillars of head coach Amol Muzumdar’s philosophy upon assuming leadership of the team. He walked the talk when the second T20I saw wholesale changes with Renuka Thakur, Asha Sobhana, a concussed Richa Ghosh, and an injured D. Hemalatha making way for Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil, Uma Chetry and Sajeevan Sajana.

The Indians gave a better account of themselves in the second fixture, barring one unfortunate blip from Jemimah Rodrigues at deep cover in the final over. A dropped chance not only gave Annerie Dercksen a lifeline but also triggered a hattrick of boundaries to plump up the South African total.

Harmanpreet experimented with her resources, with five different bowlers featuring in the PowerPlay. The pace bowling duo of Pooja Vastrakar and Arundhati Reddy shared the new-ball duties. Sajana, Shreyanka, and Radha Yadav were all given an over in the PowerPlay to try and stem the flow of runs, but in vain. The Proteas raced away to 66/1 at the end of six overs.

The Indian bowlers made an impact, implementing the lessons from the first game to drag the length back and exploit the variable bounce. The spinners, led by street-smart Deepti Sharma, opted for a stump-to-stump line and beat the batters with flight. However, India faltered at the death, conceding 31 runs in the last two overs, permitting a floundering total to reach 177. The host didn’t get to chase, with persistent rain washing out the fixture.

Deepti Sharma vindicated Harmanpreet Kaur’s faith in her with her smart bowling and timely strikes. | Photo Credit: PTI

India’s best game with the ball was the final one, with a chance to tie the series proving to be the perfect dangling carrot. It was the third game on the trot on the same strip, with the surface slowly warming up to the bowlers. Harmanpreet stacked her bowling cards quite similarly to the previous game in the PowerPlay. This time, there was better discipline with line and length, tighter fields, and improved intent outside the circle. It was a night that belonged to Pooja, whose career-best 4/13 headlined the annihilation of the Protean batting line-up, which eventually folded for just 84.

Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma took their time to chase it down, the former bringing up her fifty (her fifth 50+ score in six innings in the tour) and the series-levelling 10-wicket win with a maximum over deep backward square leg.

Smriti’s classical stroke-making has always come with the asterisk of inconsistency. Her confidence and fluency with the bat bode well for the Women in Blue ahead of the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka and the World Cup in Bangladesh. Shafali Verma struggled in the ODIs, but the Test double ton helped iron out her nerves, with the nonchalance making its way to the T20Is, where she fearlessly kept the scoring rate up. Harmanpreet and Jemimah being among the runs, stepping up the scoring with their diverse playing styles, will also encourage the outfit with slow, spin-friendly surfaces awaiting them.

There is a caveat, though. South Africa’s bowling card lacked the bite that players like Kapp lent. The all-rounder bowled just two overs, that too in the final T20I, posing plenty of questions, particularly to Smriti with her seam position and ability to capitalise on swing. The southpaw, and frankly, the Indian lineup in its entirety, was rarely challenged with the ball during this series, with India making the most of a transitioning side’s instability in its bowling arsenal.

This is a concern ahead of the showpiece events that await. Sri Lanka has a formidable pace and spin bank, particularly when deployed at home. Bangladesh’s tracks, as one saw during India’s tour there earlier in the summer, are low and slow, forcing even the best of batting teams to sweat and earn their runs. Against more confident and potent bowling attacks, India might not get away as easily and will want to guard against complacency ahead of the fixtures coming up.

Arundhati’s ability to quickly identify her faultlines and recover makes her a valuable addition to the pace pool, giving her an edge over Renuka, who can sometimes rely too much on conditions. Arundhati’s superior fielding credentials only strengthen her case. In the spin quiver, India has a problem of plenty. Alongside mainstay Deepti, Radha’s miserly economy rate and ability to break partnerships put her high in the pecking order. Asha and Shreyanka will find themselves tussling for a spot in the team, and it might come down to match-ups to see who makes the cut. Sajana, who offers a potent spin option alongside athleticism on the field and firepower with the bat, got a look in as an injury replacement and may find it harder to break in if India persists with Hemalatha.

India’s opponents in the Women’s Asia Cup appear weaker and lack the momentum that regular game time has given the Women in Blue. India is likely to reach the final, where anything can happen. This tournament will be a good opportunity to see if their form can lead to victories, especially since it’s their last chance to prepare for the biennial T20I event.