India batter Pratika Rawal opened up on the controversy surrounding her shoulder contact with England players during the first Women's ODI in Southampton on Wednesday (July 16), saying that it was unintentional.
Notably, the ICC fined Rawal 10 percent of her match fee and handed one demerit point for breaching the Code of Conduct.
She was penalized for engaging in "avoidable physical contact" with England's Lauren Filer and Sophie Ecclestone during the 18th and 19th overs of the match.
"It was not intentional. I was just running in my way and that shoulder barge thing was completely out of... It was not deliberate in that sense," Rawal told media before the second ODI.
"I don't think there is a (need to have a) reaction to it or maybe (make) a fuss out of it. It was not intentional," she added.
England also faced penalties, with a five percent match fee fine for maintaining a slow over-rate in the series opener, which India won by four wickets.
Both Rawal and England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt accepted their respective sanctions imposed by the match referee.
Rawal commented on India's approach to the ODI series, following their 3-2 victory in the five-match T20I series.
"We are taking just one game at a time. Currently, our prime focus is to win this series. To win the next match, we are already up in the series. Our prime focus is to win this series with 3-0, that will be great," she stated.
"Also, what I feel like, keeping one thing at a time, it helps with better focus and better concentration so we are just on that note," she continued.
Rawal, who scored 36 runs off 51 balls in the first ODI, stressed the importance of doing well against strong teams.
"Scoring well against teams like England and Australia gives you a lot of confidence and when we get a lot of matches against them, it builds a type of confidence that is required in the upcoming series and matches," Rawal said.
She praised the team's progress and emphasized the value of playing multiple matches. "It's a great initiative to play as many matches as we can. Also, the fact that the way our team is progressing right now is amazing and there has been a lot of contribution from all the players," Rawal concluded.
India need just one win from their next two matches to clinch the ODI series, before facing Australia in three ODIs ahead of the World Cup at home.
(With PTI Inputs)
