India’s women could hardly have started their Australian tour better. They rolled the hosts for 133 at the SCG, Arundhati Reddy returning career-best figures of 4 for 22, and were 43 for 1 after five overs – comfortably ahead on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern sheet – when the rain swept in. Match done, points pocketed.
“I think the Indian team has been playing really good cricket in the last few years,” Reddy said afterwards. “We’ve always come very close and not won games, but I think there’s a belief in the team now that we can beat anybody in this world. I think that’s the confidence that helps us and we want to continue that.”
Facts first, then the detail. Australia, asked to bat, made a bright enough start despite losing Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney inside the powerplay (the first six overs when only two fielders may patrol the boundary). At 68 for 2 after seven, they were still primed for something around 150. The mood changed in the space of one ball.
Ellyse Perry, hunting a length delivery from Reddy, drove in the air towards long-on. Harmanpreet Kaur flung herself forward and clung on – one of those grabs that silence a crowd before the applause arrives. “Perry is a big wicket, you want to get her early and I think that catch changed the momentum for us,” Reddy noted. “I think they lost a couple of wickets after that. She’s a wonderful fielder and obviously it’s great that she took that one and gave us the momentum going ahead in the innings.”
From there Australia folded, losing 8 for 65. The last five wickets cost only 12 runs as Renuka Singh, returning for her second spell, nipped out Georgia Wareham and Lauren Cheatle. Reddy was quick to acknowledge her new-ball partner. “I thought she was outstanding today,” she said. “To bowl a maiden … and to Phoebe Litchfield, I think that was an extraordinary over. Obviously she’s been a quality player for India in the last quite a few years and again, she showed a lot of her experience today.”
Briefly, Wareham (22) and Nicola Carey (26) stitched 41 to drag their side to three figures, but once Wareham holed out Australia were short of batting insurance. For the second tour running Reddy walked off with a personal best: in Perth two years ago she took 4 for 26, also removing Perry along with Litchfield, Georgia Voll and Mooney. “I love Australia, it’s the country I enjoy the most,” she smiled. “I think when we landed here, just the vibes I get. Growing up I used to watch a lot of Test matches, Ashes in Australia, and used to always want to come here and play cricket. Obviously I enjoy this place, last time around it was good and I’ve started off well and hopefully I’ll continue doing it.”
The chase, shortened by grey clouds rumbling in from the Paddington end, was straightforward. Smriti Mandhana clipped two early boundaries before miscuing Cheatle, but Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues made sure India were 16 ahead when the drizzle hardened into proper rain. Under DLS rules five overs are enough to constitute a match; by the time the umpires called time the visitors were already mopping up kit.
India have never won a multi-format series in Australia, though they pinched a T20I set 2–1 back in 2016. With a points system in play (two for each white-ball result, four for the Sydney Test, two for a draw) the early advantage could prove handy. Next stop Canberra on Thursday. Another win there seals the T20 portion, and – more importantly – underlines a trend rather than a one-off.
Tactically, India got plenty right. Lengths were tighter than on previous visits, cutters were used sparingly but at good moments, and the out-fielding, Harmanpreet’s catch in particular, was sharp. The batting has still to be fully stressed, and Australia will expect their top order to respond once they reach more familiar venues.
Yet the shift in attitude Reddy talked about feels real. Confidence from that World Cup triumph has not drifted away. Whether it holds through the longer formats remains to be seen, but for now India have struck first and struck firmly – without drama, without fuss, just effective cricket.
