The third and final ODI between Australian women and Indian women was played at the Harrup Park in Mackay on September 26, 2021. India had already lost the series after defeats in the first two ODIs as Australia extended their world-record winning streak to 26 ODIs.
Meg Lanning won the toss and decided to bat first in this dead rubber match. Ashleigh Gardner with 67 was the top scorer, while Beth Mooney (52), Tahlia McGrath (47), and Alyssa Healy (35) were the other major contributors to the Australian final total of 264/9 in 50 overs.
For India, Jhulan Goswami (3/37) and Pooja Vastrakar (3/46) were the top wicket-takers.
Though a dicey target, Indian openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma batted positively, adding 59 runs in the first 10 overs. Mandhana fell for 22 runs, while Shafali hit 56 runs in 91 balls with 7 fours.
Yastika Bhatia made her maiden ODI fifty as she slammed 64 runs with 9 fours to her name. Annabel Sutherland picked three quick wickets in the middle order, that of Richa Ghosh for 0, Mithali Raj for 16, and Pooja Vastrakar for 3, as India’s chase faltered.
But Deepti Sharma (31) and Sneh Rana (30) held their nerves to add 33 vital runs for the 7th wicket, while Jhulan Goswami finished the game with 2 wickets in hand in the final over.
The veteran Jhulan Goswami was also awarded the Player of the Match as India snapped Australia’s world record ODI winning streak at 26 wins.
The Cricket fraternity was all praises for the Indian women’s team as they earned two vital points in the series.
Here are the tweets:
