New Delhi: If India, under pressure, are to upstage Australia in their biggest game yet in the T20 World Cup, their pacers must produce something they haven’t managed so far: wickets.
Australia, dominant despite Phoebe Litchfield’s absence due to injury, have looked solid and are almost set to seal a semi-final berth. India, meanwhile, carry more than one weakness as they go into Sunday’s game at Lord’s.
Their fielding and middle-order have been talking points but their seamers have managed just four wickets – the joint-fewest among all teams at the tournament alongside Sri Lanka. Australia’s pacers, in contrast, have taken 13 wickets in four matches.
Pace weakness
South Africa pacers have already taken 22 wickets in four games, putting India’s tally in perspective. England (11), Scotland (11) and West Indies (11) have all enjoyed significantly better returns from their quicks, highlighting just how far behind India have fallen.
The numbers make for grim reading, especially when compared to the tournament’s leading pace attacks. India have clarified that their changing eleven and the use of every member in the 16-player squad is owing to horses-for-courses mindset.
Renuka Singh Thakur has just played one game, taking one wicket at an economy of seven. India have been unable to rely on her, Kranti Gaud or Arundhati Reddy consistently. Gaud and Reddy are yet to take a wicket despite bowling 30 balls each. Arundhati has gone at 10 runs an over, Kranti at eight runs an over.
Although the newest on the block, Nandni Sharma has been India’s most successful seamer with three wickets in three matches, but she has conceded 71 runs in 49 balls (Econ rate 8.7). Her wickets have largely come through catches than by beating batters, suggesting that she has benefited from chances offered than by applying sustained dominance.
The concern isn’t merely wickets. India pacers have struggled to create sustained pressure as well. They average 45.5 runs per wicket — the second-worst among all teams, behind only Netherlands (63.6). Their strike rate of 31.7 balls per wicket is among the worst in the tournament, meaning breakthroughs have been few and far between. India’s ambitions may well depend on whether their pacers can strike form.
Recent confidence
In a must-win game and with Australia dominating their head to head (5-1) record at T20 World Cups, India will take confidence from their famous semi-final win at the ODI World Cup last year as well as their first ever T20 bilateral series win on Australian soil in February.
Shafali Verma (145 runs) and Smriti Mandhana (167 runs) have been the standout batters for India, while the rest of the line-up is still looking to find its groove. They can’t afford to take it easy on Sunday, especially with a semi-final spot on the line. A win against Australia will mean India are through.
“Everyone is itching to score runs tomorrow and win against Australia. I would not like to name one player,” Mandhana told reporters on match eve. “We’ve always had good contests against them. Even as a batter, I’ve always looked forward to playing them because they are one of the best in the world.”
Despite their largely unsettled and scratchy performance in the group stage so far, India’s confidence is reassuring. However, their fielding, pace bowling and middle-order batting needs to fire.
