That’s all from women’s cricket then, as rain plays spoilsport as Indian batter shine. But there’s plenty of action going on with IPL and India vs Sri Lanka at the SAFF Championship. Follow along these links for all the live updates from men’s cricket and football.
India vs Sri Lanka, SAFF Championship 2021, live updates: Stimac makes three changes to the side
IPL 2021, CSK vs PBKS live: CSK in big trouble at 42/4 as PBKS strike telling blows
With the match called off, both teams share points. The multiformat series now stands 7-5 in Australia’s favour.
It’s official – The first T20I has been called off due to rain.
A shame, as India’s batters were shining through with all Top 6 looking good. Tough on Jemimah Rodrigues, who is stranded on 49* after making her India comeback with a bang.
Update: We have about 15 minutes to go to know whether we will have play again today.
India’s innings ends on 131/4 after 15.1 overs.
We have an update. The rain has forced a curtailed game and India’s innings has been completed about 5 overs short.
A bit unfortunate for Jemimah Rodrigues, who was batting on 49 off 36.
As of now, there is no clarity on when play will resume and the revised par score for Australia’s chase, but for even a minimum of a five-over innings, the match will have to restart at 9:06pm local time. It’s 8.30 PM there.
Weather update says that the rain is still pouring at Gold Coast.
Earlier in the day, there was just one awkward moment in the Rodrigues-Bhatia partnership. But luckily, Yastika survived.
Oh dear, the ever-present rain has come to disrupt play in the T20Is as well. Players are going off field with India at 131/4 after 15.2 overs.
India 130/4 after 15 overs
Jemimah Rodrigues moves to 47 and with 5 overs to go, India are well placed for a late surge.
India 122/4 after 14 overs
Richa Ghosh is the new batter in and Australia bring in Tahlia McGrath into the attack; they have a glut of bowling options, don’t they?
But this round goes to Ghosh, as she smashes three boundaries to make it 14 runs off the over. The 120 is up in the 14th over, what an innings!
WICKET! Yastika Bhatia is out on 15 off 15. India 106/4 after 12.1 overs
Georgia Wareham into the attack and she gets the breakthrough. Bhatia looks to go aerial but she holes it out to the fielder at the long-on.
India 106/3 after 12 overs
The runs keep coming in boundaries! The 100 comes up for India and it’s also the 50-run stand between Jemimah Rodrigues and Yastika Bhatia, off 35 balls, as the two youngsters have rebuilt admirably.
STAT ALERT: Jemimah Rodirgues goes past 1,000 runs in T20I cricket, becoming the fourth Indian woman to get there.
India 85/3 after 10 overs
Jemimah Rodrigues picking off from where she left off in The Hundred! two gorgeous, picture-perfect boundaries off Hannah Darlington’s first over as she moves to 27 off 22. At the halfway mark, India are well placed even after the fall of the 3 quick, big wickets.
India 74/3 after 9 overs
Nicola Carey into the attack now, Meg Lanning is constantly mixing up her bowlers. Yastika Bhatia gets her first T20I boundary, lofting it over mid-off. The left-hander bat has got a good eye, find of the tour for sure.
To recap that mad Powerplay....
India 67/3 after 8 overs
Gardner from the other end as Australia continue with seam-and-spin. Quick singles and Rodrigues gets a neat boundary when given width ball to make it 9 runs off the over.
India 58/3 after 7 overs
Yastika Bhatia is the new batter in while Australia have brought in Ellyse Perry. Just three runs off the over.
WICKET! Harmanpreet Kaur is out on 12 off 6. India 55/3 after 6 overs
FOUR.... and OUT! This time it is captain Harmanpreet Kaur, trapped LBW by Sophie Molineux. A big wicket for Australia as the captain was looking in dangerous touch even in her short stay.
So... Which team won the Powerlay? 55 runs, 3 wickets.
India 55/3 after 6 overs
Jemimah Rodrigues joins the party with a boundary off her own on the first ball. That brings up for the 50 for India, a good Powerplay score. Dropped from ODIs, this is an important innings for the youngster.
India 46/2 after 5 overs
Jemimah Rodrigues, in at No 3, and Harmanpreet Kaur are the new batters on crease. And both are in the middle for the first time during this tour.
The captain, returning from injury, shows her intent early with back-to-back boundaries, a wonderful pull for boundary off Vlaeminck’s pace and follows with a flick through the gaps.
WICKET! Shafali Verma is out on 18 off 14. India 37/2 after 4 overs
SIX! ....And Out. Both deliveries and the slogs were virtually identical, but one cleared the ropes with ease and the second found the fielder at deep mid-wicket with ease. A superb over from Gardner with two wickets and 8 runs off it. Both Indian openers are back in the hut after a great start.
WICKET! Smriti Mandhana is out on 17 off 10. India 31/1 after 3.2 overs
Ash Gardner comes into the attack after that uber expensive over from Molineux and she strikes on the second ball. Mandhana doesn’t get the distance and it’s an easy catch for the fielder at the edge of the ring.
India 29/0 after 3 overs
Vlaeminck streams in with her express pace and Verma is looking to attack that with constant movement. It pays off, with a cracking Six over long-on after 4 straight dots and a wide ball. Just Shafali Verma things.
India 22/0 after 2 overs.
Sophie Molineux is picked to share the new ball and Mandhana welcomes her like a set batter would against a spinner with the old ball – down the track for a boundary and then a cleanly-hit six down the ground through long-off with a cracking four to wrap the over. 14 runs off it, what a start!
India 8/0 after 1 over.
Vlaeminck, returning to the side after a while, starts off with a huge no-ball. But the highlight of the over is Shafali’s effortless six on the third – makes room and casually lifts it through covers. What a talent! The Aussie tries the short ball soon but the Indian manages well.
Smriti Mandhana & Shafali Verma on crease, Tayla Vlaeminck – returning from injury – with the new ball.
Here we go!
The last time these two teams met in a T20I match, it was the world record attendance T20 World Cup final at the MCG in March 2020. India lost that match but going by the momentum and performance of this series, it will be a different T20I side at Gold Coast today,
PLAYING XIs
India – Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Yastika Bhatia, Richa Ghosh(w), Pooja Vastrakar, Deepti Sharma, Shikha Pandey, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Singh
Australia – Alyssa Healy(w), Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning(c), Ashleigh Gardner, Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath, Nicola Carey, Sophie Molineux, Georgia Wareham, Hannah Darlington, Tayla Vlaeminck
TEAM NEWS
Two debuts each for India and Australia. Tahlia McGrath and Hannah Darlington as well as Yastika Bhatia, all who impressed in the ODIs and Test get their T20I caps. It’s also an international debut for pacer Renuka Singh from India.
In other big news, senior pacer Shikha Pandey and batter Jemimah Rodrigues are back in the side. Likely in place of Jhulan Goswami and Mithali Raj, who don’t play the T20I format.
TOSS TIME:
Australia has won the toss, again! The change in captaincy doesn’t help the fortunes with the coin then...
Meg Lanning has chosen to bowl first. She loves chasing, doesn’t she?
Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s return from an injury layoff will prove to be a shot in the arm as a buoyant India look to challenge a world champions Australia in a three-match T20I leg of the multi-format series.
Australia currently hold a 6-4 points lead, with each of the three T20Is worth two points. India will need to win two at least level the series.
Read the full preview
01.30 pm: Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the final leg of India’s tour of Australia. We are all set for the first T20I between Meg Lanning’s Australia and Harmanpreet Kaur’s India in Carrara, Gold Coast.
Buoyed by the return of their T20I skipper... can India continue to trouble the mighty Aussies in what has so far been an evenly contested contest between two good sides?
Australia squad: Meg Lanning (c), Darcie Brown, Maitlan Brown, Stella Campbell, Nicola Carey, Hannah Darlington, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Georgia Redmayne, Molly Strano, Annabel Sutherland, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham
India T20I squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Yastika Bhatia, Shikha Pandey, Meghna Singh, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Richa Ghosh (wk), Harleen Deol, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Renuka Singh.
Here’s a quick recap of the multi-format series and the points tally:
First ODI: Australia won by nine wickets (2-0)
Second ODI: Australia won by five wickets (4-0)
Third ODI: India won by two wickets (4-2)
One-off Test: Match drawn (6-4)
Follow Scroll.in’s coverage of India tour of Australia here.