India’s pre-tournament preparation for the the ICC Women’s World T20 hit the high note with a second straight win in the West Indies. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led team beat hosts and defending champions Windies by five wickets in a practice match in a rain-curtailed match at the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Coolidge, Antigua and Barbuda.
They had earlier beaten South Africa by three runs in the warm up game. New Zealand recorded a six-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in another match while Bangladesh also won their opening practice match by six wickets over Ireland.
Batting first, opener Hayley Matthews scored a swift 41 off 37 balls but India’s bowlers, led by spinners Poonam Yadav and Radha Yadav, fought back and restricted them to 115/8.
India’s chase got off the wrong foot as veteran Mithali Raj was dismissed for a duck. However, other opener Smriti Mandhana continued her impressive form scoring 32 off just 20 balls.
The rain came down then and India were set a revised target of 75 in 12 overs and India won with just three balls to spare. Deandra Dottin was the pick of the Windies bowlers taking three wickets.
However, there was an injury concern for India as pacer Pooja Vastrakar was assisted off the field after being injured.
“It was a really exciting game and I am really happy with how our team played today. This is the kind of performance I expect from my team and I hope we can take this confidence into the tournament. It is always nice to win, and we have set high standards for the team, We did really well in the last ODI World Cup and we are expecting good results again here,” skipper Harmanpreet said after the match.
West Indies stand-in captain Hayley Matthews said, “Everybody got an opportunity with bat and the ball and that is important. Despite the loss, we got to see what we have and what the opposition India, have as well. We are looking forward to playing in Guyana and St Lucia now. They are two great and historic grounds, we know the conditions and will have lots of support, so that should help us.”
India’s Schedule:
Nov 9, Friday: India vs NZ
Nov 11, Sunday: India v Pakistan
Nov 15, Thursday: India v Ireland
Nov 17, Saturday: India v Australia
Nov 22, Semifinals
Nov 24, Final
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