Boria Majumdar
At one point, the win predictor had India at 70 per cent. In fact, I’d say it was 85-15 in India’s favour. Five wickets in hand and an asking rate of seven, big teams coast to a win if playing in Indian conditions. One boundary here or there always comes and that’s all India needed. One could smell the semi-final almost.
That’s when it fell apart. India, somehow, managed to blow it. Figure out how to lose! Think of ways to make things complicated and waste a golden opportunity. All that was needed was basic commonsense. We did not have it. Third time in a row, India missed a trick in the end-game. Twice defending and this one chasing. The campaign is literally hanging in the balance now.
Where does this team go from here? How do the captain and coach make things work? Harmanpreet Kaur, who batted well, needs to introspect and take stock of her captaincy for a start. To get Sree Charani to bowl the 50th over was a strange call. She conceded many and to know Renuka Singh Thakur had an over and yet wasn’t bowled was surprising. Charani wasn’t having the best day and that was a key moment in the game.
Then it was Deepti Sharma. In the 2017 World Cup, she had blown it. At that time she was a youngster and many of us believed she’d learn from it and get better and better. Eight years down the line and it’s still the same. A winning position against the same opponent and yet again Deepti let the opportunity slip.
Then Richa Ghosh. Perhaps the cleanest of hitters in the team, all she needed to do was clear one. Get under the ball and just get it over the infield. She played a half-hearted stroke to be caught at cover. As a player in form, she needed one good over to close out the match.
Finally to Amanjot Kaur and Sneh Rana. Both are decent with the bat. They can clear the field. For whatever reason, they kept taking it deep. Even Lauren Bell wasn’t attacked after a misfiled for four on the first ball of the 49th over. That’s when she should have been put under pressure and forced to make a mistake. Nothing of the sort was done and all India did was pick singles. It was a most baffling display and the truth is it seemed Amol Muzumdar (coach) had no idea that he could have sent instructions in.
Against New Zealand, India still have a chance. A win can do the job. But the point is do the girls believe they can win? Do they have the zeal left? Can they regroup and make things count? Who will lead the salvation act? It is now in the mind and the game against the White Ferns will be the most high-pressure one that these women have played. It will test them. Test us all. Can they redeem themselves or will women’s cricket in the country go back by years?
For now, this will take time to digest. Even the Diwali festivities aren’t enough to forget this loss. It hurts and hurts deep.
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