It was business as usual the moment India’s openers came out to bat. The Indian management was keen that Shafali Verma spend some good time in the middle against Netherlands, and the Indian opener did exactly that. She played some sublime shots and, apart from a mistimed pull against the short ball, it was an innings full of confidence, which should give her heart ahead of the game against South Africa.
Smriti Mandhana, on the other hand, continued her World Cup form, scoring a classy 74, and will rue the fact that she missed out on a hundred. Jemimah Rodrigues started well but did not convert, while Yastika Bhatia, who got an opportunity, played a poor shot to be stumped. India did go past 200 thanks to the strong start, but the middle-order stutter will not go down well with coach Amol Muzumdar. However, with the Netherlands still finding their feet in the sport, 200 was always going to be more than enough for India. Harmanpreet Kaur’s side eventually prevailed by 95 runs.
Netherlands, to their credit, started well and raced to 30 in the first four overs. Nandni Sharma, playing her first game, was a tad wayward, with some deliveries down the leg side and others wide outside off stump. Clearly, she is a bit raw and will need more game time to make a difference.
Harmanpreet tried Shafali in the powerplay, but the move did not come off, after which she went back to the tried and tested Shreyanka Patil. And that’s when catastrophe struck. After her very first ball, Patil twisted her ankle badly and had to be taken off the field in a buggy. She looked in serious pain and, at the time of writing, we are still awaiting an update from the Indian management on the extent of the injury.
This is seriously bad news for India. Shreyanka was one of their go-to bowlers and would have been key against South Africa. Now, in her absence, it will be Radha Yadav who is likely to step in, but how far she can stand up to the test remains to be seen. Patil was in rhythm, and Harmanpreet and Amol will have to move to Plan B to make up for this loss.
With Shreyanka off the field, Harmanpreet turned to Shree Charani and Deepti Sharma, and they were soon on the money, with Netherlands finding run-scoring difficult from both ends. Spin, clearly, will be India’s go-to option in Manchester, and each of the three – Radha, Deepti and Charani – will have to bowl well against the Proteas to stem the flow of runs.
While the result was soon inconsequential, the key talking point from the match will remain Shreyanka’s injury. Do India have it in them to make up for her loss, or could it derail their campaign in Manchester? We will need to wait until the 21 June for the answer.
Follow REVSPORTZ for more updates.
The post India Cruise Past Netherlands, but Shreyanka Patil Injury Casts Shadow Ahead of South Africa Clash appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.
