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After a long and varied home season, the Indian women's cricket team has a final chance to win their first T20I series against Australia at home. The deciding match is on January 8. The series is currently tied at 1-1. Harmanpreet Kaur's India have the opportunity to beat the reigning world champions, Australia, on their home ground and start the 2024 T20I World Cup year in a stylish way.
In their five T20I series against Australia, India have won only one, while Australia have won four. Their win in an away affair during the 2015-16 season is the most significant accomplishment for this team.
However, after securing historic victories in one-off Tests against both Australia and England earlier in the season, India aim to capitalise on this final opportunity. In the first game, India dominated, defeating Australia by a record margin of nine wickets. However, their batter struggled in the second game due to a challenging pitch at DY Patil Stadium on December 7.
The initial presence of heavy dew favoured India's batting performance in the first half, but its absence in the second half made it challenging for India to contain the Australian batter. Despite this, the Indian bowlers performed admirably, maintaining tight lines and displaying sharp fielding. It's worth noting that the home team's fielding has been inconsistent at best.
The hosts have a significant worry in Kaur's batting form, especially after their six-wicket defeat in the second game. The Indian captain has failed to score a fifty in 10 matches across various formats during this season. With seven single-digit scores in 11 innings, including the first T20I where her services were not needed, concerns about her batting performance persist.
"Every player cannot have a good day everyday, but suddenly anyone can have a very good day. It is not the case that we are (right away) aiming for big shots but we are trying to play (as per the) merit of the ball," all-rounder Deepti Sharma told the media after the match when asked if Kaur's form was a concern for the team.
In the second game, Deepti played a solitary role, displaying a spirited all-round performance. She scored a 31 off 27 balls during a struggling Indian innings, providing a late push. She also fought valiantly with the ball, claiming the first two wickets out of the four that Australia lost.
The pitches in the two T20Is haven't favoured aggressive batting, particularly in the first innings, leading to bowlers having a significant impact on the proceedings.
"It has been a really good contest between bat and ball, there is something in it for both the batters and the bowlers," said Australia's player of the match Kim Garth on December 7.
"Especially, coming from the wicket that we played on the Test match, (it) was a lot more challenging for the batters, so it has been really pleasing that there has been a bit in it for the bowlers, particularly with the new ball," she added.
Deepti faced difficulties while batting on the pitch in the second game.
"...it was not an easy wicket to bat on. The ball was turning as well as getting slow (off the surface). I think we were about 15 runs short...,” she replied when asked what went wrong for India.
Squads
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Richa Ghosh (wk), Amanjot Kaur, Shreyanka Patil, Mannat Kashyap, Saika Ishaque, Renuka Singh Thakur, Titas Sadhu, Pooja Vastrakar, Kanika Ahuja, Minnu Mani.
Australia: Darcie Brown, Heather Graham, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris, Alyssa Healy (c&wk), Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath (vc), Beth Mooney (wk), Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham.
(Powered by AI, Inputs by India Today)
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