India’s vice-captain Smriti Mandhana reckons the opening pair holds the key to any serious World Cup challenge, a view sharpened by three modest stands against England this week. India lost the T20I series 2-1 and, perhaps more tellingly, never really got away in the powerplay: totals of 19, 27 and 0 felt a touch flat on good batting pitches.
“For me and Shifu, we are definitely timing the ball well but unfortunately we are not able to contribute in big ways for the team,” Mandhana admitted after the six-wicket defeat in the decider. “But for both of us, we’ll go back in the nets, keep working hard and make sure we come back stronger as an opening pair because both of us pride ourselves to give good starts and keep the momentum going. But unfortunately we could not do that in this series. We’ll take it in our stride and try and work hard.”
The numbers back her up. Mandhana managed 40 runs at 13.33, Shafali Verma 35 at 11.66, albeit at a brisk strike rate north of 150. Neither innings lasted long enough to worry England’s new-ball bowlers for more than a couple of overs.
Learning on the road
Coming early to English conditions, two months out from the World Cup, was always about collecting information. Mandhana pointed out the silver lining: “Coming early and playing a series in England before the World Cup is definitely good to do in terms of preparations.” Different bounce, different overheads, familiar pressures – all logged in the notebook.
India’s middle order, in contrast, looked in fine fettle. Yastika Bhatia returned from injury to top-score in the three-match series with 119 runs, including a tidy half-century. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur finally found her range on Tuesday, striking 56 not out from 40 deliveries – the knock that dragged India to 180 for five when 160 had felt more realistic.
“She batted amazingly well today,” Mandhana said. “Harman, when she is at her best, it is a sight to watch. Today, she played all over the ground, really important innings under pressure today, especially when we needed that knock to get us to 180-plus. Really happy. I just feel everyone is definitely in good nick. It’s good signs going forward for the World Cup that Jemi, Harman, everyone is looking really beautiful to watch from the outside. Hopefully, I can watch from the non-striker’s end.”
What went wrong with the defence?
At 38 for three, India were sniffing a series win. Then Alice Capsey and Heather Knight stitched 137, driving and cutting anything with width, working the spinners into pockets. The partnership, unbroken until the final stretch, drained India’s options.
“We definitely started extremely well with the ball, 35 [38] for 3. [But] I wouldn’t really take anything away from the partnership they had,” Mandhana observed. “I think they played really good cricketing shots. They played all around the ground. In hindsight, we would have been able to build pressure with a few dot balls, but we were not able to do that.”
Bowling coach Troy Cooley – never shy of a direct comment – felt India were “one quality over short”, but also highlighted progress: length control improved, fielding sharper, and Renuka Thakur showed late-swing that should translate to Caribbean venues in September.
Where next?
The squad now has a short break before a conditioning camp in Bengaluru. Expect the opening pair to live on the centre strip; the coaching group is keen on practising low-risk powerplay options. One idea: Mandhana takes first strike every game, letting Verma attack from ball one without the extra mental clutter of facing the first delivery – small tweak, potentially large dividend.
Selections look mostly settled. If everyone stays fit, only a reserve spinner’s spot appears undecided. That said, in Indian women’s cricket nothing is really final until the flight tickets are issued, and even then you keep your phone on.
Mandhana knows the spotlight sits on the top of the order. She welcomed it, half-smiling as she left the presentation area, promising “we’ll sort it out.” India, chasing a first T20 crown after the ODI triumph last November, will hope she is right.
