Australian pacer Megan Schutt lambasted Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur following Southern Stars’ T20 World Cup 2023 triumph with a win over South Africa in the final at Newlands, Cape Town.
Under the leadership of Meg Lanning, Australia clinched their record-extending sixth Women's T20 World Cup title. The Beth Mooney-inspired side defeated the hosts by 19 runs in the summit clash on Sunday (February 26).
After Australia's title-winning campaign, Schutt heaped praise on skipper Lanning while also taking a dig at the Indian captain Harmanpreet.
Notably, Lanning and her troops edge past the Women in Blue in an absolute thriller of a semi-final to enter the final.
Chasing 173 to win, 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.
"They were cruising and we were under the pump. Collectively our last five overs were crucial. Getting a couple of wickets in there but also providing pressure on all aspects, whether it's in the field, with the ball or even body language out there. Harman said our body language was down. I'll call bull**** on that. We're just calm. We don't panic, we don't take it out on each other if there's a misfield or a dropped catch. That's where we stand out as a team. We're a team first and we know getting angry about that isn't going to do about that. So it was a collective effort," Schutt told Cricbuzz.
During the chase, India were reeling at 28/3 in the fourth over but Harmanpreet (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.
Harmanpreet was furious with herself after the unfortunate run-out that triggered India's collapse.
"Stay calm. It was wrong of Harman to follow that after (reaction after being given out). It sets the wrong precedent for those coming after. I know she was calm after that and spoke to Deepti. But the damage was done already by then. Being able to compose yourself in that situation. Of course, you've to go through lots to figure that out. We've had our own losses. Yes, we win a lot, but we've had our own clutch moments that we've lost and learned from that," Schutt added.
