India captain Harmanpreet Kaur couldn’t manage to power her team past the finishing line against Australia in Sharjah in the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024. Australia defeated India by 9 runs and qualified for the semi-final of the tournament.
Set to chase 153 runs following Australia's batting performance, India played reasonably well but struggled to keep up with the needed run rate in the middle overs. Harmanpreet Kaur hit her second consecutive half-century, but she wasn't at her fluid best and left herself with too much to do in the final few overs.
Harmanpreet's 54*(47) scored at a rate that was insufficient in a match that required her to bat at more than 8 rpo. She couldn't hit the boundary frequently enough in the middle overs, and despite a late flurry, she concluded her innings with a strike rate of only 114.89.
There were also questions about Harmanpreet's decision-making in the game's final over, with India needing 14 after a huge 19th over.
Kaur hit a single off the first ball, and Annabel Sutherland immediately bowled Pooja Vastrakar. With India needing 13 off three, Kaur took another single rather than backing herself to force a super over.
However, Sutherland bowled some brilliant deliveries keeping the tailenders in check and Harmanpreet couldn’t do much from the other end.
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