SERIES TAKEAWAYS
Follow UsFinally, the misery of the Indian women’s team ended in the three-match ODI series against Australia after they were clinically clean-swept. However, losing 0-3 against a champion side like Australia isn’t a disgrace on its own. However, the manner of the defeat exposed many fatal flaws that exist in the Indian setup, right from the upper management to the player level.
There is an overwhelming sense that the team relies on individual brilliance way too often to win games. That was on show during the series as well because when the seniors and stars failed, others did, too. However, one massive positive emerged even in this regard, and that should be the biggest learning for Harmanpreet Kaur and Amol Muzumdar. Let’s begin with that.
Arundhati Reddy gives hope, and a lot of it
No Indian bowler has ever taken all the top four wickets of a team in a single WODI. However, when all looked lost as early as the 10th over for the Indian pacers, Arundhati Reddy came in as a change up, and got the ball to move in the air and then seam off the pitch at the helpful WACA track.
So good was her length control on the day that she dismissed two right-handed and two left-handed batters in her first spell that lasted for eight overs. The banana swing she got wouldn’t have been lethal had she missed the right lengths. However, she banged it between good length and just back of a length on the pitch and dismissed Georgia Voll, Ellyse Perry, Phoebe Litchfield and Beth Mooney in almost no time.
This was the second-best figure for an India bowler in an away WODI and the third-best for a bowler against Australia Down Under. Moreover, the fact that she could bowl eight overs on the trot under the unforgiving Perth sun also shows her fitness levels.
At this stage, Harmanpreet and Muzumdar should really rue not playing her in the first two games. She makes for a great change-up and middle-overs pace option, which India has lacked for a long time. With Arundhati, they now have a really solid option for that, and she’s also someone who can easily bat at eight in an ODI team. Now India just need to trust her, and not just go with a spin-heavy strategy again because it would be preposterous to drop a player with such elite skills.
Where was the footwork of the Indian batters?
From the crease movement data available to us from the series, the Australian women charged down the track and created room for themselves 185 and 23 times, respectively, in the three ODIs. Meanwhile, in comparison, the Indian women charged only on 22 occasions and created room only six times.
You might wonder why it’s so crucial.
However, marry this data with the visual evidence from the series, and you’ll realise that the Indian batters have been getting stuck at the crease way too often and are letting the Australian bowlers execute their plans without any worry. Whereas the Aussies took the offence to the Indians and, as a result, outbatted India every single time. No Indian bowler except Arundhati could find their length and keep it tight for a long period.
The Indian batters need to improve their crease activity quickly. With the ODI World Cup happening in India in 2025, the batters would need to create momentum in their shots from these crease movements. Otherwise, they’ll find it hard to score at an above-par rate, the consequences of which were served to them in the whitewash Down Under.
Too reliant on individual brilliance?
Sample these three statistics -
a) Indian pacers in the third ODI
Arundhati - 10 overs, 26 runs, 4 wickets, 2.6 economy
Others - 26 overs, 159 runs, 0 wickets, 6.11 economy
b) Smriti Mandhana has scored nine centuries in ODI cricket. India has won seven of those games.
c) Since 2021, Indian women have scored nine ODI centuries. Just three people have scored them, and even there, Mandhana has five tons, Harmanpreet three, and Punam Raut has one.
Indian women’s team is very lopsidedly reliant on their senior batters, and the likes of Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Richa Ghosh haven’t transformed the potential of their talent into kinetic performances. The result is in front of you - just 19 wins in 44 ODIs since 2021.
The younger players need to show up with the bat and the ball. It can’t be a case like the third ODI where the Indian chase became obsolete as soon as Mandhana left the crease. This is a long-standing issue and needs immediate redressal with a busy season ahead.
A tactically horrendous series
Deepti bowled 19 overs in the series, conceding 136 runs at an average of 68 and an economy of 7.15.
When you are your team's strike spinner, these numbers are poor and show that your kind of bowling has been redundant for the opposition. You are no threat to them.
Despite that, the Indian team management wasn’t malleable enough to bring in Radha Yadav or play Priya Mishra in the third ODI, who would turn the ball away from the right-handers. Shreyanka Patil, who can get prodigious amounts of overspin on the ball just like Nathan Lyon, wasn’t even picked on the team (no updates regarding any injury either).
In India, Deepti is very lethal. However, the same can’t be said in Australia, where off-spin bowling is milked more frequently than a cow on a farm.
Moreover, Harmanpreet's field placements were outright defensive and negative in most of the series. Singles were easily given, as it only took a few boundaries from the opposition for her to open the field and employ boundary riders at sweeper positions.
Hence, the fielders did not apply any pressure on the Australian batters. It felt as if the autopilot of mediocrity was on whenever the Indian team played against the Aussies in the series.
There is a multi-format white ball series against the West Indies beginning in three days. India don’t have the time to alter much on the field. However, they certainly can improve their tactical planning of the game, which is currently in shoddy terrain.
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