The Indian women’s cricket team showed some much needed intent against the West Indies today which was lacking in the their second game against New Zealand. They went on to win by a big margin of 156 runs which brought them to the number one position in the points table thanks to their net run rate which is now 1.333.
After winning the toss it was Yastika Bhatia who scored a quick-fire 31 of just 21 balls but after losing three quick wickets it was Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur who both scored attacking centuries to take the score to 317, the highest in this World Cup so far. Their partnership of 184 which is again the highest for the fourth wicket in the history of the tournament ensured India posted a total which was far beyond the reach of the West Indies.
Mandhana and Kaur are contrasting players. The former prefers pace and believes more in timing the ball and has the elegance and grace of a left hander where as the latter is a power hitter and takes on the spinners by charging down the wicket with ease. Both complimented each other as Mandhana took on the West Indian fast bowlers to score 123 where as Kaur went after the spinners to score 109 at a strike rate of more than hundred.
Captain's call
On the small New Zealand wickets, a score of 260 plus is what their captain Mithali Raj had asked her for and both the players responded to the captian’s call by scoring their respective centuries. Most importantly the skipper batted first which brought India’s spinners Sneh Rana and Rajeshwari Gayakwad who used the conditions on the used pitch to perfection and pick four wickets between them.
With this huge win, India needs to win at least two more games out of their remaining four to get to the semifinals. If India manage to beat England in their next game, they can avoid the clash against favorites Australia in the semis by being the second or third team. They have now got the confidence back with this huge win and if they keep playing like this there’s no telling how far they can go.
