Courtesy: BCCI
On Sunday, December 15, the Indian women’s cricket team defeated West Indies by 49 runs, to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai. After India posted their third highest total in women’s T20I history, scoring 195/4 with fifties from Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues before restricting West Indies to 146/7 after Titas Sadhu picked up a three-wicket haul with the ball.
For the unversed, West Indies captain Hayley Matthews won the toss and decided to field first with the pitch expected to get better for batting as the evening progressed. However, the West Indies bowlers weren’t quite up to the mark throughout their bowling effort, allowing India women’s cricket to reach their third highest total in T20I cricket, scoring 195/4 in their allotted 20 overs after splendid batting performance from all their batters.
Smriti Mandhana (54 off 33) and Jemimah Rodrgiues (73 off 35) scored fifties during India innings, stitching together a second wicket stand of 81 runs, to play a key role in one of the best batting performances for the team in T20Is. Karishma Ramharack was class above the rest of the West Indies bowlers in the first T20I of the three-match series, registering figures of 2/18 in her four-over spell.
In the run chase, Titas Sadhu picked up the big wicket of Hayley Matthews for just 1 off 5, to put West Indies on the backfoot early on in their pursuit of the 196-run target, while Shemaine Campbelle didn’t stay at the crease for much longer either. But then, Qiana Joseph (49 off 33) and Deandra Dottin (52 off 28), stitched together a third wicket stand of 54 runs, to keep West Indies in the contest before Titas Sadhu dismissed them in quick succession.
After that, the Indian bowlers kept taking wickets at regular intervals, including Deepti Sharma and Radha Yadav in particular, along with some economical spells, to never let West Indies really get in the hunt for a victory.
