India faced New Zealand in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup group-stage match. The Black Caps won the toss and elected to bat first. The Women in Blue are one of the favourites to win the tournament. However, things did not go in their favour in the opening game of the major competition. Before the T20 World Cup, the Kiwis lost all their 10 T20Is in a row.
But, when it mattered most, they rose to the occasion. The Kiwis defeated a fragile Indian team by 58 runs in a Group A match at the Dubai International Stadium on Friday. Harmanpreet Kaur’s side was never in the game. The two New Zealand openers Suzie Bates and Georgia Plimmer gave their side a brilliant start through a 67-run partnership. The bowlers were nowhere near their best. Despite picking two wickets in quick succession they dropped catches and the fielding was poor.
India’s Richa Ghosh fumbled a straightforward top-edge from Suzie Bates. Chasing a target of 161 India’s batting line-up collapsed in the powerplay. They lost crucial wickets early on and kept on falling at regular intervals. The team lost potential game-changers Shafali Verma (2), Smriti Mandhana (12), and Harmanpreet Kaur (15) within the first six overs.
India Women stumbles in crucial time
Does the overreliance on the star batters cause failure? Somewhat yes the middle order failed to perform in crucial games for India. They are expected to perform when the stage is set by the top order batters and they will come and slog play aggressive brand of cricket. India was bowled out for 102 runs. Captain Kaur was the highest run scorer with 15. Except for her only four batters could touch the double-figure mark.
This is a serious concern going forward in the tournament with teams like Australia, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka is there in the group of India. The Women in Blue will be facing their arch-rivals Pakistan who started the tournament on a very well note beating Sri Lanka in a low-scoring game. It will be tough for Harmanpreet’s side to qualify if they fail to register a win in the second game.
