Questions remain about Harmanpreet Kaur’s fitness as India prepare to play the West Indies in the second T20I at the DY Patil Stadium on Tuesday and take an unassailable lead in the three-match series.
While the Women in Blue recorded a comfortable 49-run victory in the first series, skipper Harmanpreet was off the field for most of the second innings after batting for some time.
Although the team management did not specify the reason for her absence, Titas Sadhu said that the “medical team is investigating the matter” and expects everything to be fine soon.
During her 14-minute stay on the pitch, Harmanpreet struggled to find the center of the ball before hitting the target at the end of the pitch. She also looked around cautiously during the team’s training session on the eve of the match, with her knee tightly bound.
Despite some brilliant bowling performances from young Titas Sadhu and experienced Deepti Sharma, sloppy fielding let India down on several occasions. | Photo source: EMMANUAL YOGINI/ Indian
Despite some brilliant bowling performances from young Titas Sadhu and experienced Deepti Sharma, sloppy fielding let India down on several occasions. | Photo source: EMMANUAL YOGINI/ Indian
While one would have hoped that Harmanpreet would be in good form despite the short turnaround time, India also need to fix their on-field shortcomings. Despite some brilliant bowling performances from young Titas Sadhu and experienced Deepti Sharma, sloppy fielding let India down on several occasions. Although Jemimah Rodrigues was confident that things would soon improve, the coaching staff began engaging with the youngsters in a catching drill session shortly after the game ended.
Apart from the disappointments of the Australian tour, during which they lost the ODI series 0-3, the Indian batsmen – led by Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah – put up a brave fight against the West Indian bowlers, who were plentiful. Going forward, it would be important for the Indian batsmen to maintain the momentum and ensure that it does not falter in critical situations.
Unlike India, who had little time before the series, the West Indies had almost ten days to acclimate to the conditions, but even then, none of their players – apart from Deandra Dottin and Qiana Joseph – were able to live up to expectations. As head coach Shane Deitz said, the visitors need to get over the loss and “go out there and perform much better in the next game.”
