Many months before the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, team India got a reality check in Asia Cup final as they got beat by Sri Lanka by eight wickets to spare. The Indian team did everything fine up until the semi finals, but they went weak in all departments of the game when it came to the finals. After the defeat, former Indian captain Mithali Raj pointed out India needed to get someone who could do good attack in the third number batting position.
In the finals, Uma Chetry walked out to bat at no.3 and scored nine runs in seven balls. Dayalan Hemalatha and Sajeevan Sajana were given a chance in the third position, but are yet to get desirable results on a constant basis. Meanwhile, Jemimah Rodrigues has been pushed to no. 5, where she has also managed to perform well in the position as well.
“Come October, India is going to participate in the biggest tournament, the T20 Women’s World Cup. The areas I think India should really focus on improving are the number 3 batter position.”
“They are still searching for the right batter to go at No.3. They have tried Hemalatha and they have tried Chetry. But ideally, they should have someone who can really go big after the sort of opening partnership that Shafali and Smriti would provide,” said Mithali.
In addition to all that, Mithali also says that she feels India needs some all-rounders who can contribute within a few overs as currently they are playing with 5 bowlers.
“Also, the bowling aspect needs attention because right now they are going with only five bowlers. They probably require a 6th one, someone like an all-rounder who can bowl a few overs as well as bat. I think these are the areas India should look to tweak before getting into the World Cup,” she said.
