India suffered a five-run defeat at the hands of Australia in the first semi-final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 in Cape Town on Thursday (February 23).
Chasing 173 to win, the Women in Blue were reeling at 28/3 in the fourth over but skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (52 off 34) and Jemimah Rodrigues (43 off 24) produced a counter-attacking 69-run stand to bring the team back in the contest.
India needed a very gettable 39 off last 30 balls with five wickets in hand but as it has been the case in the past, the team came up short to finish at 167/8.
After this heartbreaking loss, Harmanpreet and company need backing and words of comfort, especially from their compatriots. However, former India women’s team captain Diana Edulji has criticised the side harshly.
Edulji has no hesitation in saying that India’s U-19 stars fielded way better in their victorious T20 World Cup campaign in comparison to the seniors’ effort in South Africa. She also added that most of the senior team players will struggle if the ‘yo yo’ test becomes mandatory in women’s cricket.
“I found the U-19 team much fitter than the seniors. They didn’t choke in the final. From 2017 to 2023 it is the same old story (for the senior team).
“The BCCI must have proper assessment of players’ fitness. I know yo yo test is a bit tough for women. Out of 15 , 12 will fail that test but you have a different criteria for them for acceptable fitness standards. Right now there is no accountability on that front,” Edulji told PTI in an exclusive chat.
India's shoddy fielding and catching allowed the defending champions to post a challenging 172/4 on the board after Meg Lanning opted to bat in the semi-final.
“You are definitely looking at an overhaul (in terms of planning and preparation after the World Cup loss). They need to improve fitness first of all, their fielding, their catching running between the wickets. Unless you have strength in the legs, you won’t be able to run.
“They need absolute danda (BCCI needs to crack the whip) to reach the top. You are getting everything from the BCCI including equal play.
“Every time you lose a winning game, it is a habit. BCCI has to take a strong call and not give in to the demands of the players.
“Have a proper strategy for the future. We have had enough of this star culture. It is not going to work like this,” said Edulji.
During the chase, India were in the driver’s seat when Harmanpreet was at the crease. However, her bizarre run out proved to be a game-changer. The Indian captain’s bat got stuck in the middle and she failed to make it back to the crease.
Commenting on Kaur’s dismissal, Edulji said: “She is thinking the bat got stuck but if you see the second run she was jogging. Why are you running in a relaxed manner when you know when your wicket is so important? You have to play professional cricket to win. Look at the dive Perry made to save those two runs. That is what professionalism is.”
“They don’t give up till the end and we are not ready to fight at all. You can’t be falling at the last hurdle all the time.”
“She was casual on the second run. She thought she would comfortably reach. We were told in the 1970s by Mr. Sunil Gavaskar that every ball you have to learn to ground your bat then only you get into that habit,” she said.
(With PTI Inputs)
