Trisha Ghosal in Mullanpur
After yesterday’s defeat to Australia, much of the post-match chatter centred on Pratika Rawal’s strike-rate and whether the youngster was suited to opening. But to pin the blame solely on her is to overlook the larger truth of India’s innings: the slowdown in the middle overs was a collective problem.
Smriti Mandhana began brightly, racing to 34 off her first 36 deliveries. Yet once settled, her tempo also dipped. In her next 26 balls, she added just 24 more runs — 14 of those coming from two fours and one six. That meant in the other 23 deliveries, she managed only 10 runs. By the time she departed, the scoring rate had already begun to flatten out.
Pratika, meanwhile, had 36 from 43 balls before the 13th over — numbers not vastly different from Smriti’s. But over her next 53 deliveries, she managed only 28 runs. Of those, 29 balls came after Smriti’s dismissal, during her partnership with Harleen Deol. In that phase, Pratika made 14 off 29, while Harleen herself laboured to 14 from 24 balls. The tempo never really lifted until later in the innings.
Harmanpreet Kaur then joined Harleen and struck a brisk 11 off 9 balls. It wasn’t exactly a cameo, but it briefly promised a lift in tempo. Yet Harleen, batting alongside her captain, scored just 8 from 11 balls. Only after Harman’s dismissal did Harleen finally break free, finishing strongly with a flurry of boundaries that gave her 32 off her last 22 balls. She closed with a fluent 54 from 57 — but the acceleration came late, after overs had already slipped by.
To isolate Pratika, who was facing Australia for the first time, is unfair. The data shows that established players were equally culpable for the slowdown. Harleen admitted as much in the post-match press conference. Asked about the middle overs drying up, she explained: “From the outside the pitch seemed absolutely flat and batting friendly, but that was not the case once we went in. The ball was coming on much slower to the bat. I wanted to take some time to settle and then play my shots.”
It was an honest assessment, and one that underlines the challenge India faced as a batting unit. Australia’s bowlers may not have had the wicket assisting them, but their discipline and persistence made run-scoring increasingly tricky.
With another ODI to come in Mullanpur, India will now know what to expect from both conditions and opposition. The lessons from this defeat are clear: the burden of maintaining momentum in the middle overs cannot fall on one player. To stand up to Australia, India’s batting group must share that responsibility. Only then can they hope to put up a much better show in the next contest.
Also Read: Australia’s relentless mindset exposes India’s attitude gap in Mullanpur clash
Follow Revsportz for latest sports news