Indian women walloped by New Zealand in dead rubber
Hamilton, Feb 1: Having already sealed the series, the Indian women's cricket team put up an ordinary effort with the bat to go down by eight wickets against New Zealand in the third and final ODI here on Friday.
Captain Mithali Raj, playing a record 200th ODI on Friday, had spoken about the importance of a clean sweep going into the game but her team could muster only 149 after being put in to bat. The White Ferns chased down the target in 29.2 overs to register a morale-boosting win.
Deepti Sharma, batting at number three, was the only one to make a significant contribution for India, top-scoring with 52 off 90 balls. India collapsed to 149 all out in 44 overs after being at 117 for four in the 35th over.
" I am happy with the first series win in New Zealand. I am happy that youngsters like Deepti (Sharma) and Jemimah (Rodrigues) got runs. We definitely wanted to try a few things. The bowlers have done well through the tournament. But today we didn't get enough runs," Mithali said in the post-match presentation.
The venue proved to be a testing one for both of India's men and women's teams. Having sealed the series 3-0, the Rohit Sharma-led side too suffered a heavy loss on Thursday after being bundled out for 92. The ball swung and seamed consistently for the first time in the series, troubling the highly-rated Indian batting.
However, off-spinner Anna Peterson did the maximum damage in the women's fixture on Friday, taking four wickets for 28 runs in 10 overs. Pacer Lea Tahuhu chipped in with three wickets and conceded just 26 runs in nine overs.
"We talked a lot about pride and just wanted to bounce back. Really glad that we did. But probably took us a little bit too long," said White Ferns captain Amy Satterthwaite.
Considering opener Smriti Mandhana's match-winning performances in the previous two outings, the Indian middle-order did not need to do much. Such was the visitors' dominance that star batswoman Harmanpreet Kaur did not get to bat.
On Friday, she did and made 24 off 40 balls before an unsuccessful charge down the wickets off Peterson led to her downfall.
The in-form Mandhana attempted a big one against the spin of Peterson to only end up being caught by Sophie Devine. Her opening partner Jemimah too did not do much, leaving India at 13 for two in the fifth over.
"I would have been really happy to get some more runs. The first two games were very satisfying, I was happy that I could score the winning runs. It's a lot of hard work yet to be done. I have to score more, win more matches to be tagged the best in the world," said Mandhana reflecting on her performance.
A solid knock was expected from Mithali on her 200th ODI but she ended up with nine off 28 balls.
New Zealand chased down the target with ease with veteran Susie Bates (57) and Satterthwaite (66 not out) scoring fine half centuries.
Mandhana was awarded player of the series for 105 and 90 in the first two games.
The three-match T20 series will begin in Wellington on February 6.
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K’taka cabinet approves cricket matches at M. Chinnaswamy stadium: Reports
Belagavi: The state cabinet under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has reportedly given its nod to permit cricket matches at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, subject to certain conditions.
The decision is learnt to have been taken after a meeting held at the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha here on Thursday.
Reports indicate that Home Minister Dr G. Parameshwara has been directed to formulate rules along with a referendum to hold a cricket match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
The cabinet’s approval comes subject to conditions, considering the report of Justice D’Cunha, which was prepared after the stampede.
The June 4 stampede during the celebrations for RCB’s maiden IPL title killed 11 people, which raised serious questions over the stadium's capability to host large-scale events.
Will RCB be playing at their home ground next year?
Stating that the “state had learned from the tragedy,” Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Monday, December 08, dismissed the talks about shifting Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s home games out of the city.
He also said that the Chinnaswamy Stadium is the “pride of Bengaluru and Karnataka” and vowed that IPL fixtures will continue to be played there.
On Wednesday, Shivakumar met the newly elected KSCA president Venkatesh Prasad at the Circuit House in Belagavi and reiterated that cricket matches, including IPL fixtures, will not be shifted out of Bengaluru.
“We have no intention of stopping matches at Chinnaswamy Stadium, but crowd control measures and the Michael D. Cunha committee’s recommendations will be implemented in phases,” he told reporters.
Shivakumar said the government is committed to promoting cricket and supporting fans while safeguarding the state’s reputation, adding that Prasad had sought the government’s cooperation and agreed to work jointly on the issue.
