Moments of The Day: Same Story, Different Opposition
This match was similar to the India-Scotland match. Spinners choked the Associate nation, while Rohit-Rahul finished the rest.
Stephan Baard & Michael van Lingen started positively, scoring 33 in just 4.3 overs. However Bumrah and Jadeja soon reduced Namibia to 39/3. Jadeja was good, but the pick of the bowlers was Ashwin for me – The bowled off Green and couple of edges to slips were proper Test match off spin.
Wiese’s 26, along with Frylinck & Trumpelmann’s finishing helped Namibia to a competitive total. Altogether, David Wiese ended up as the fourth highest run-scorer at the end of the Super 12s with 227 runs, best of 66*, average of 45.40 & 127.50 SR. Not bad for someone representing Namibia for the first time.
Since the Afghanistan game, 4 players have had standout performances for Team India:
Jadeja: 1/19, 3/16, 3/15
Ashwin: 2/14, 1/29, 3/20
Sharma: 74, 30, 56
Rahul: 69, 50, 54*
While Rahul & Sharma almost killed the chase with a beautiful highlight package, Suryakumar Yadav was promoted ahead of Virat Kohli. A classic 25* (19) followed including an inside out shot and a pull. When asked later about the move, Kohli responded with, “Surya didn’t get much game time,…, and it’s a nice [World Cup] memory of him to take back.“
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: The Ravi Shastri Era Ends
Even though India did not win an ICC trophy during his tenure, India made large strides, especially in Test cricket. R Sridhar improved fielding standards all around and Bharat Arun is credited for the rise of India’s fast bowling attack around the globe. Ravi Shastri instilled the confidence which was evident in the home/away England series & the 2 series victories overseas against Australia, especially Gabba 2021 (rising from 36 All Out). An almost 2.0 W/L ratio across formats is unprecedented for an Indian coach.
He also mentioned that not having enough rest between the IPL and the World T20 attributed to not being switched on during crunch situations and pressure matches early on.
In any case, I will leave you with his own quote from today, “Sometimes in life, it’s not about all you accomplish, it’s about what you overcome.” Beautiful.
Have a great journey ahead coach! Whether that is coaching in the IPL or back to the commentary! Would also love to see a more free Virat Kohli.
T20 World Cup Points Table, Most Runs, Wickets, Catches, Dismissals
No need to go elsewhere for thePoints Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
Toss: India won the toss and chose to field first.
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, UAE
Umpires: Marais Erasmus & Rod Tucker
What Actually Happened
Winner: India won by 8 wickets
Scores: Scotland 85/10India 89/2
Player of the Match:Ravindra Jadeja 3/15
Best Figures
Ravindra Jadeja (4-0-15-3)
Mark Watt (2-0-20-1)
Most Runs
George Munsey 24 (19)
KL Rahul 50 (19)
Moments of The Day: Collective Bowling Performance, Rahul-Rohit Show Key To Strong Indian Victory
Bumrah started by bowling Kyle Coetzer and Scotland never recovered. The pacers, Bumrah & Shami, had combined figures of 6.4-1-25-5.
Ravindra Jadeja in the middle broke the back of the Scottish batting. Bowled straight and quick and choked the batting. LBW, B, LWB. Classic Jadeja.
The rest was done by India’s opening pair. In order to get ahead of Afghanistan & NZ’s NRR, India needed to chase 89 runs within 43 ball (7.1 overs). As it turns out, India finished it in 39 balls (6.3 overs), thanks to KL Rahul’s 18-ball 50.
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: Scotland Keep On Drowning
After winning 3 in 3 in the qualifying stage, Scotland has looked a class below in the Super 12s. Now the fourth loss in a row, they will want to finish on a high…Except heir last game is against group toppers Pakistan.
T20 World Cup Points Table, Most Runs, Wickets, Catches, Dismissals
No need to go elsewhere for thePoints Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
Toss: Afghanistan won the toss and chose to field first.
Venue: Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Umpires: Paul Reiffel & Richard Kettleborough
What Actually Happened
Winner: Pakistan won by 45 runs
Scores: India 210/2Afghanistan144/7
Player of the Match:Rohit Sharma 74 (47)
Best Figures
Gulbadin Naib (4-0-39-1)
Mohammad Shami (4-0-32-3), R Ashwin (4-0-14-2)
Most Runs
Rohit Sharma 74 (47)
Karim Janat 42* (22)
Moments of The Day: Rahul-Rohit & India’s Positive Intent
KL Rahul & Rohit Sharma set the tone for India. Hitting 5 sixes and 14 fours between them, they carried India to 140 in about 14 overs. Strong platform meant India could promote Rishabh Pant & Hardik Pandya ahead of Kohli. 27* (13) & 35* (13) was quite the finishing touch.
The bowling stories of the day were of Shami & Ashwin. I am happy for Shami, who had received a lot of social media hate after the game against Pakistan. Today he was India’s highest wicket taker and dented Afghanistan’s chase at the top. Ashwin playing his first T20I since 2016 showed why is still the best off-spinner in India. An economy of 3.5 with wickets of dangerous Najib & Gulbadin ensured India would win by a large margin.
At the end, Janat’s quickfire 42 (including a last ball six) and intelligent batting by Mohammad Nabi 35 (31) made sure NRR margin between the two countries was still far
Honorable Mention: Pandya’s difficult boundary catch to dismiss Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who was looking really good
If only they had restricted Pakistan earlier….
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: The Toss
Till this game, Afghanistan was winning the toss and choosing to bat first – Their template, bat first, score high, unleash the spinners. With Mujeeb’s injury & dew factor, Afghanistan went with bowling first and were never in the game. Without a target, Rashid’s guile (conceded 36) & Naveen-ul-Haq’s slower deliveries (conceded 59) were not potent.
Another broken dream was suggestions in social media that the match was fixed due Afghanistan’s lack of intensity. This sort of rhetoric just isn’t called for and is actually detrimental to the game.
T20 World Cup Points Table, Most Runs, Wickets, Catches, Dismissals
No need to go elsewhere for thePoints Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
India Vs New Zealand Quick Review – India do not even fight as New Zealand spin defeats India again.
India have not lost to New Zealand in an ICC event since 2003. The last three, 2019 ODI World Cup, 2021 WTC & T20 World Cups especially crushing to Indian fans.
Toss: New Zealand won the toss and chose to field first.
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, UAE
Umpires: Marais Erasmus & Richard Kettleborough
What Actually Happened
Winner: New Zealand won by 8 wickets
Scores: India 110/7 New Zealand111/2
Player of the Match:Ish Sodhi 2/17
Best Figures
Trent Boult (4-0-20-3)
Jasprit Bumrah (4-0-19-2)
Most Runs
Ravindra Jadeja 26 (19)
Daryl Mitchell 49 (35)
Moments of The Day: Sodhi-Santner Magic Strangles India Once Again
5 years ago, in the first match of the 2016 T20 World Cup, the duo of Santner & Sodhi came together to choke India for 79. They were back at it again. Although Santner did not take a wicket, 4-0-15-0 made sure Sharma-Kohli could not free themselves. Them came Ish Sodhi (4-0-17-2) and finished it off taking both those wickets.
A few days ago, I had questioned why Daryl Mitchell was opening when Williamson, Conway, Phillips, & Seifert were in the XI. Today, he showed exactly why. Low scoring chases can be tricky but he made sure NZ reaches the target with ease.
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: What Has Happened to Team India?
India has lost 2 in 2 and are still mathematically in with a chance to qualify for the semi-finals. Losing two matches is not a huge issue. Pakistan & New Zealand are world class teams. What bothers me is the manner of defeat. Shaheen Shah Afridi & Trent Boult ensured India are on the backfoot, and they just couldn’t recover. For a team with immense depth & having dominated the decade, not competing & not showing intent for 80 overs straight is a concern.
T20 World Cup Points Table, Most Runs, Wickets, Catches, Dismissals
No need to go elsewhere for thePoints Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
Toss: Pakistan won the toss and chose to field first.
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, UAE
Umpires: Chris Gaffaney & Marais Erasmus
What Actually Happened
Winner: Pakistan won by 10 wickets
Scores: India 151/7 – Pakistan 152/0
Player of the Match: Shaheeen Shah Afridi 3/31
Best Figures
Shaheen Shah Afridi (4-0-31-3)
Most Runs
Virat Kohli 57 (49)
Mohammad Rizwan 79* (55), Babar Azam 68* (52)
Moments of The Day: A Day To Remember for Pakistan’s Stars
Shaheen Shah Afridi you beauty! What a memorable spell. LBW to Rohit Sharma, ball of the tournament through the gates of KL Rahul, and finally Virat Kohli.
Virat Kohli‘s strike rate might be low on paper, but he did what was necessary. Absorbed the pressure, stemmed the flow of wickets, and took India to a decent total. Just could not accelerate towards the end.
Babar Azam-Mohammad Rizwan What do I even say? They have a 50+ T20I batting partnership average and for good reason. They bat and bat and bat and bat….152* (107) absolutely brilliant partnership that. If you want to understand the mental strength of Rizwan, just look at the video below.
Tweet of the Day
This is a brilliant piece of work. If you had to look at one piece of cricket content this week, look at the video below. Rizwan is the greatest.
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: World Cup Record 12-1
After numerous ODI World Cups and T20I, Pakistan have finally won the battle. 12 attempts, 1 win, Broken Dream for India’s enviable record against Pakistan in World Cups.
Also a good time to state that the IPL (with 10 teams) cannot be considered the world’s if it does not have players like Shaheen, Babar, and Rizwan.
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Mohommad Naim – 126 runs (Bangladesh, 3 Matches)
Shakib Al Hasan – 11 wickets (Bangladesh, 4 Matches)
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
At the end of a close series, Australia marched ahead in the multi-series with 4 wins & 11 points, while India languished at just 5 points, with 1 win.
India have closed gaps in all formats, but Australia are still one step ahead. Without further ado, here are some highlights from this series—Scorecards, Stats, Summaries, and Awards.
India saw lots of Beth Mooney. A constant source of runs for the Australian team. With scores of 59 (tour match), 125* & 52 (ODI), 34 & 61 (T20I), she was the highest run scorer across the three formats. Mooney, who had replaced Rachael Haynes in the T20I squad, has now risen to #1 ranking. Her best innings came in the 2nd ODI, taking Australia from 52/4 in the 16th over to 275/5 on the last ball. She stitched two partnerships—126 (137) with McGrath & 97* (71) with Nicola Carey.
Tahlia McGrath & Darcie Brown were the finds of the series for Australia.
McGrath was an all-round package with contributions of 74 & 3/45, 47 & 1/46 (ODI), 28 (Test), and 42* & 44* to finish things off in the T20Is.
Darcie Brown set the tone for Australia in the first ODI. With Perry not back at her best with the ball, Brown took responsibility with a match-winning 4/33 in only her 2nd ODI, limiting India to 225. Hannah Darlington, the debutant also chipped in with a couple of wickets.
The series cannot be summarized without the contributions of Sophie Molineux. She was consistently among the wickets and stifled India’s run rate in the middle overs, taking 11 wickets in total. The most courageous moment of the series came in the 3rd ODI when Molineux got hit in the lip and started bleeding. She went off the field, but came back with her face bandaged to finish her quota of overs. However, it could not prevent the end of the streak.
Jhulan Goswami might be coming to the end of her career, but she still has what it takes at the international level. In the first ODI, she scored 20 to get India to a respectable total of 225 after a brief collapse. In the 2nd ODI, her batting again came at the fore with 28* but was at the receiving end of an umpiring no-ball call which resulted in Australia’s last ball victory. Joy and sorrow within minutes. Redemption soon followed in the 3rd ODI with a player-of-the-match performance—3/37 & 8* with a last-ball six. For her all-round performance, Elyse Villani on commentary started #JusticeForJhulan to get Goswami to play T20 cricket.
Mandhana & Rodrigues came back in style after doubts on their ability. Mandhana’s 127 in the Test match and 52 in the T20I reinforced her class after a lean season. Jemimah Rodrigues was the story of The Hundred as the 2nd highest scorer with 249 runs, 3 50s, and the best innings of the tournament with that 92*. She continued her form in the T20I, scoring 49* in a rain-effected game.
With Jemimah out of the ODI side, debutant Yastika Bhatia grabbed her opportunity with scores of 35 & 64 in the ODIs. Her fluency and promotion at #3 meant India did not miss Jemimah or inured Harmanpreet Kaur much. Good foil for stalwart Mithali Raj.
Awards
Australia Women
India Women
Emerging Player
Georgia Wareham
Yastika Bhatia
Surprise Package
Tahlia McGrath
Pooja Vastrakar
Broken Cricket Dream
Australia’s Record ODI Streak Breaks
Jhulan-Mithali’s Final Test Match?
Australia Women Vs India Women 2021 Series Awards
Where Do They Go From Here?
The much awaited ODI World Cup will commence in March 2022. Australia plays its first match against arch-rivals England on March 4th, while India begin their journey on the 5th. Here is the detailed schedule.
So what did I think of the series?
Do not go by the scoreline, but it was much closer than expected. In each match, India competed most of the game, either falling narrowly or just before the end. In the Tests, India actually dominated (if only for a 5th Day…).
However there is still a long way to go. In parallel to men’s cricket, this era of Indian-Australian rivalry resembles the early 2000s. Australia are at the top of the world across formats & have just completed a famous streak. India have a new fanbase with good shows in the recent World Cups. Their best show can defeat any team on their day, but it might still take a decade to establish a decent bench strength like Australia.
