One of India’s main batting worries, according to Reema Malhotra, is Harmanpreet Kaur’s dismal recent performances. On Sunday, January 7, at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, the Women in Blue gave the Australian women a target of 131 runs in the second T20I.
Harmanpreet scored six runs off of 12 deliveries. Ellyse Perry caught Harmanpreet off the bowling of Ashleigh Gardner at deep square leg. For the past five innings in all formats combined, the Indian captain has failed to score more than ten runs.
With six wickets remaining in the three-match series, Alyssa Healy and her team managed to even the score by chasing down the mediocre target.
Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat remaining silent is a cause for concern – Reema Malhotra on India’s batting mistakes in 2nd T20I vs Australia
When Reema Malhotra was questioned about the errors India made in the batting department during a discussion on Sports 18, she answered:
“Batters got starts but none of them ensured that they stood at one end and made a big score. The way Smriti Mandhana was batting, she looked in good nick to me after a long time, the sort of shorts she played. Short and sweet, she could have prolonged that knock,”
The former Indian all-rounder added that Harmanpreet Kaur‘s batting performance in the recent matches was a concern for the women in blue.
“The opening partnership didn’t fire but Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat remaining silent is a cause for concern. Harmanpreet Kaur generally plays the sweep shot but when you get the top edge, the ball goes in the air,” she added.
Once a batter gets set, she should make sure that she plays a big knock – Reema Malhotra
Reema Malhotra brought up the notion that other batters must make up for Harmanpreet Kaur and Amanjot Kaur’s poor performances. She said that if one of the batters gets set, then she needs to make sure that she converts it into a big knock.
“I am sure Amol Muzumdar will talk about it, that once a batter gets set, she should make sure that she plays a big knock because Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat is not firing and Amanjot Kaur is not doing anything special in the middle,” she elaborated.
The good thing is that India didn’t play that bad cricket – Reema Malhotra
The former cricket player who is now a commentator said that the set batters have to score significant knocks. Malhotra asserted that poor shot choice contributed to India’s defeat.
She made the observation that even though Pooja Vastrakar plays good down the ground, she opted for a reverse sweep, whereas Richa Ghosh played a nothing shot, playing a full delivery from the back foot.
“So two or three batters who are in rhythm on a given day need to ensure that they play big knocks. These are small problems that need to be rectified. The good thing is that India didn’t play that bad cricket. They made some mistakes for sure but those are not ones that cannot be rectified,” she concluded.