A sequel to a movie would have its share of new twists in comparison to the original. While watching Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur go about their business in the T20 World Cup game against Sri Lanka, somehow it felt like we were watching a sequel, with a slick new plot in place. Mandhana, the free-stroking batter, had failed in her previous two matches. When Mandhana couldn’t bisect the gaps in the first few overs in the India-Sri Lanka encounter, that narrative looked all set to continue.
However, there was a sub-plot waiting to occur. In the sixth over, Mandhana cleared her front leg and thumped a boundary. In the next over, she put on her dancing shoes and lofted one into the stands. Suddenly, it was a different version of Mandhana.
When Mandhana is in full flow, her willow is akin to a calligrapher’s paint brush. Her batting can be visualised, and also heard, via the sweet sound of the willow meeting the leather. But even a champion goes through days where the ego is battered, the confidence is dented and there is mounting frustration. Mandhana is no different. It was just that Mandhana swallowed her ego and was ready to hang in there on a slow wicket. The thought process was that at some point, the fortunes would change. And that is what exactly happened as she cracked a game-changing fifty.
The night didn’t just belong to Mandhana, as her long-time teammate Harmanpreet also lit up the stadium with her pyrotechnics. Although Harmanpreet did compile a useful hand in the game against Pakistan, she had come into the tournament having averaged just over 20 in T20 World Cups. There was also an injury cloud hanging over her.
Harmanpreet, though, seemed to have come out to bat wearing her special suit. Her final score read 52 off a mere 27 deliveries. Those runs included a shot in the last over which deserves a frame-by-frame dissection. While facing the last ball of the innings, Harmanpreet stood deep in the crease and her stance indicated that she was aiming to clear the front-leg and thwack it through midwicket.
Udeshika Prabodhani almost outsmarted her by trying to angle it away from the right-hander. Unfortunately for the experienced left-arm bowler, Harmanpreet checkmated her by moving across the crease to crunch it straight down the ground. Such was the pedigree of the shot that a couple of girls were seen whistling in the Indian dug-out. That one stroke also told you everything you want to know about her fearless attitude.
The sequel also had the third and final sub-plot attached to it – brilliant fielding. For too long, the Indian women’s team have come under heavy scrutiny for their poor fielding. The counter-argument to it would be that the players have been trying hard in practice sessions to ameliorate their standards. Munish Bali, the fielding coach, conducted a training session of 90 minutes on October 3. On October 5, the session lasted for approximately 45 minutes, with the main focus being on Richa Ghosh and Asha Sobhana.
Richa, who dropped a sitter in India’s first game of the tournament, was very sharp behind the stumps against Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, Renuka Singh, who fluffed enough chances on day 1 of India’s practice session at the ICC Academy, pouched a diving catch. Even India’s catching efficiency of over 80 per cent in the tournament gives an inkling that their fielding is on an upward curve. India’s bowling too was top-notch.
India’s next assignment is against the favourites, Australia. Unlike moviegoers, the Indian cricket fans would pray that the plot of the next installment doesn’t change much from its previous part.