While taking short interviews of fans at Dubai International Stadium, it was quite evident that Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana are the two marquee players of the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup. There are a fair number of billboards and images, too, featuring the duo at different parts of the stadium. Unfortunately, from India’s point of view, the trump cards of the line-up haven’t exactly made an impression at the T20 world events.
If Harmanpreet averages 21.37 at T20 World Cups, then Mandhana has notched up 468 runs at an average of 21.27. The story so far at the ongoing World Cup has not been much different – Mandhana has accumulated 19 runs over two matches. One of the reasons for her rather ordinary performance in the World Cup could be the conditions. The slow decks in Dubai don’t exactly suit her style of batting.
It is true that in the shortest format, the batters don’t get much time to get their eye in. However, with Mandhana struggling for form, she can look to play herself in and then expand her game. Even just one shot could help Mandhana get her confidence back in the crucial tie versus Sri Lanka. There is a bigger concern for the Indian coaching staff, and that is Harmanpreet’s injury. The India captain, who sustained a neck issue against Pakistan, wasn’t seen in the practice session.
Despite a few worry lines, India had enough positives to take from the game versus Pakistan. The Indian spinners and Arundhuti Reddy bowled incisively. Arundhati calibrated her game to the conditions in Dubai by attacking the stumps and reaped the rewards. One of the minus points was India taking almost 19 overs to chase down the target. With the team’s NRR taking a battering versus New Zealand, a little more urgency would have helped.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka have lost both their encounters so far. Chamari Athapaththu, the Sri Lanka skipper and the shining light of the side, has also found runs hard to come by. As the India-Sri Lanka match is held in the evening, the dew factor might come into play, assisting batters like Chamari and Mandhana to play their shots.
The only bright spots for the Island nation have been Sugandika Manel Kumari and Udeshika Prabodhani combining to pick up eight wickets between them. Sri Lanka need a collective performance if they have to usurp India. A few months ago, they were crowned the Asia Cup champions after beating the same side. So, that could act as a source of motivation for Sri Lanka to do it again. Sri Lanka have to win this game in order to stay alive in the tournament.
Expected conditions: The conditions could change in the evening, with certain external factors making its presence felt. In the New Zealand-India encounter, the pace bowlers found swing in the second innings. While there seemed to be some dew when the West Indies locked horns against Scotland. This makes the toss important.
Playing XIs: Pooja could miss out on another game due to an injury. She was seen practicing with a strap on her knee at the nets. On the other hand, Mandhana said in the pre-match presser: “Harmanpreet is doing all good and she is available for the selection in tomorrow’s game.”
If Harmanpreet doesn’t play, then Yastika Bhatia or Dayalan Hemalatha could come into the equation. There is also a quandary over who would bat at No. 3 and No. 4. Looks like India would be flexible over those two batting positions.
India (Probable XI): Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur/Yastika Bhatia, Richa Ghosh, Deepti Sharma, S Sajana, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil, Asha Sobhana, Renuka Singh
Sri Lanka (Probable XI): Vishmi Gunaratne, Chamari Athapaththu, Harshitha Madavi, Kavisha Dilhari, Nilakshi de Silva, Hasini Perera, Anushka Sanjeewani, Sugandika Kumari, Inoshi Priyadharshani, Udeshika Prabodhani, Inoka Ranaweera