Encouraged by her coach Arjun Dev, Arundhati Reddy requested the NCA for batting opportunity opposite of the cream of Indian bowlers who were in a dedicated camp. Against Pakistan on Sunday, in front of a near 16,000-strong record crowd in Dubai, Arundhati Reddy stepped up in the absence of one of India’s current new-ball bowlers, Pooja Vastrakar.
Pacer Arundhati Reddy was the pick of the bowlers, claiming figures worth 3/19. Arundhati Reddy opened her account by dismissing Omaima Sohail (3) in the seventh over. It was a slower delivery as Sohail was caught at mid-off. The 27-year-old pacer then trapped Aliya Riaz (4) lbw in the 13th over. The pacer got the prize scalp of Nida Dar (28) in the final over as the veteran missed a cross-batted shot and her off-stump was disturbed.
As mentioned, Arundhati Reddy claimed 3/19 in her four overs. These are her career-best figures. She claimed 1/28 in India’s tournament opener against New Zealand. As per ESPNCricinfo, she has now raced to 25 wickets across 31 WT20Is (ER: 7.76). In T20 WCs, she now has eight wickets in as many games at 24. He has four scalps in two WT20Is against Pakistan.
Pitch and Toss
Pitch Report : It’s searingly hot in the middle, it’s 37 degree Celsius, the players will feel like 40. 61m and 60m square boundaries while the straight boundary is at 73m. It’s pitch number 5, the conditions are tough and the batters will need to assess it quickly. There will be a lot of spinners from both teams, the conditions are slow and low, reckon Mel Jones and Anjum Chopra, in their pitch report.
Toss : Pakistan Women’s skipper Fatima Sana won the toss and chose to bat with one change in the Playing XI as Diana Beg was replaced by Syeda Aroob Shah. India Women’s team skipper Harmanpreet Kaur who also wanted to bat first made one change in the playing XI bringing in S Sajana for Pooja Vastrakar
Arundhati Reddy and Shreyanka Patil restricts Pakistan to 105 for 8
India got off the mark at the second time of trying in the T20 World Cup 2024 with a six-wicket win over Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium. The victory was set up by bowlers Arundhati Reddy (3 for 19) and Shreyanka Patil (2 for 12), who kept the opposition down to 105 for 8. Harmanpreet Kaur then led from the front with a crucial 29 in the run chase to see India home with seven balls to spare.
However, unlike in their opener against New Zealand, they made a strong start with the ball despite being asked to field in the unforgiving afternoon heat of Dubai. Renuka Thakur, taking over opening over duties in the absence of the injured Pooja Vastrakar, struck with the last ball of her first over, a booming inswinger that pegged back Gull Feroza’s off-stump.
Muneeba Ali tried to keep up with Pakistan’s new mantra of wanting to to maximize the PowerPlay by lofting a pair of boundaries off Thakur in a 12-run third over. But that enterprise didn’t last long as Sidra Amin fell to Deepti Sharma, dragging an attempted sweep onto her stumps. In the context of the first few games of this World Cup, Pakistan still had a decent score of 29 at the end of the PowerPlay. They were, however, pushed to a corner over the next four overs by some disciplined Indian bowling.
Arundhati Reddy should have dismissed Muneeba with the second ball of her spell but Asha Sobhana put down a simple catch at short third-man. Three balls later, Arundhati Reddy had Omaima Sohail chipping a length ball straight to mid-off. From the other end, Shreyanka Patil preyed on Muneeba’s desperation to find boundaries, drawing her out of the crease with a flighted delivery and had her stumped.
That wicket-maiden left Pakistan reeling at 41 for 4, having faced 38 dot balls at the half-way point of the innings and tasked the experienced Nida Dar with a rebuild job.
Dar ended a 38-ball streak without a boundary by sweeping Thakur for a four but continued to run out of partners at the other end. Reddy returned to trap Aliya Riaz LBW. India’s lapses in the field continued as Sobhana dropped another simple catch to reprieve Fatima Sana. The Pakistan captain made use of the benevolence to strike two back-to-back fours in the following over, incidentally off Sobhana. The leggie did have the last say in the exchange by dismissing Sana, thanks in large part to Ghosh’s reflexes behind the stumps.
When Shreyanka dismissed Tuba Hassan, Pakistan were down to 71 for 7 in the 15th over. That they could bat out their quota of overs was down to Dar anchoring one end with a steady 28 while Syeda Aroob and Nashra Sandhu scored a boundary each at the end to push the score past 100.
Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first in front of a big crowd at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, with each team making a change from their opening game, with the captains saying that both line-up alterations were enforced due to injury. Pakistan’s Diana Baig continues to undergo treatment and was replaced by Aroob Shah, while Pooja Vastrakar was replaced by Sajeevan Sajana for India in a move that also lengthened the batting.
And it was India who had the better of proceedings early in the match. Renuka Singh provided a moment of magic in the first over to send Gull Feroza back to the dugout without having troubled the scorers. And Deepti Sharma ensured the powerplay went India’s way when she cleaned up Sidra Amin (8/11), leaving Pakistan on 29/2 after six overs, with Muneeba Ali the only batter to look relatively comfortable.
Omaima Sohail’s stay in the middle was short-lived as she was caught off Arundhati Reddy for 3 (6), and India were jubilant when they prized out Muneeba Ali (17 from 26), with the opener looking to up the ante and being stumped off Shreyanka Patil.
The introduction of Pakistan captain, coming in at number seven, injected some life into the innings as she struck two boundaries in a promising cameo of 13 from 8, with her stay in the middle coming to an abrupt end when she was superbly caught by Ghosh off the bowling of Asha Sobhana. But Pakistan managed to get to something resembling a competitive total thanks to Nida Dar (28 from 24) and Syeda Aroob Shah (14* from 17).
The two teams came into the game in contrasting form. While Fatima Sana’s heroics inspired Pakistan to a famous win over Asian champions Sri Lanka in their opener, Sophie Devine’s excellence consigned India to a 58-run loss, making this game even more significant for Kaur’s side. Historically, India have an advantage of 12-3 over Pakistan in the format. In their previous meeting in the 2023 edition of the T20 World Cup, Jemimah Rodrigues’ attacking 53* sealed a seven-wicket win over the Women in Green.
On the eve of the contest, Pakistan captain Fatima Sana spoke about using the power game to hit hard at their rivals. The openers tried to use their feet in a bid to walk the talk after Pakistan opted to bat. Gull Feroza tried to use her feet to counter Renuka Singh’s swing but was undone in the opening over. Muneeba Ali also used the crease so much that the runs hardly justify those. She used even the slightest of width to go over the in-field, like she did twice against Renuka inside the powerplay.
In the absence of Vastrakar, who was out with a niggle, Arundhati Reddy had to shoulder additional seam-bowling responsibility and was brought on in the fourth over of the game. Immediately she induced a false stroke, with Sidra Amin chipping one towards mid-off. In her next over, Arundhati Reddy delivered the perfect blow, getting Muneeba to scoop one straight to short fine leg only for S Asha to grass a sitter. A couple of balls later, though, Arundhati Reddy struck by having Omaima Sohail miscue one to mid-off.
A few quiet overs saw Muneeba being stifled, and Patil pounced on the chance to get among the wickets. Anticipating a charge from the Pakistan opener, she threw one wider outside off, past which Muneeba walked and Richa Ghosh did the rest. Dar found it slightly tough to keep the scorecard ticking on her own and losing partners regularly did not help.
Arundhati Reddy first trapped Aliya Riaz in front – the DRS not coming to the Pakistan allrounder’s aid after Hawk-Eye showed it to be clipping leg – before Patil dismissed Tuba Hassan for a three-ball duck. Sana showed a bit of intent and struck successive fours off Asha but fell to a terrific catch by Ghosh. She looked to slog the leg spinner out of the ground but Ghosh dived to her right to pluck a one-handed stunner. Arundhati Reddy then bowled Dar to pick up her third.
India batters eased to victory vs Pakistan
Harmanpreet Kaur’s India needed a win after the loss to New Zealand in their opening game, and they got exactly that against neighbors Pakistan, who were slightly off the boil at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Arundhati Reddy (3/19) and Shreyanka Patil (2/12) starred with the ball as a rebalanced India lineup kept Pakistan tied down in the first innings, for whom Nida Dar top-scored with 28 from 34.
And, faced with a modest target of 106 to win, India eased to victory, aided by an excellent 32 from 35 by Shafali Verma and Harmanpreet Kaur’s 29 from 24, although the skipper was forced to retire hurt on the verge of victory.
India took few risks in their batting effort, keeping it steady through the powerplay in search of their target of 106. Smriti Mandhana was the one wicket to fall inside the first six overs, with the opener going for 7 off 16, lured into a false shot off Sadia Iqbal.
But Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues, promoted to number three, built a solid base for India after the bowlers had restricted Pakistan to 105/8. Verma looked to accelerate after the drinks break and her attacking intent proved her undoing as she departed for 32 from 35 balls, having done much of the work to break the back of the chase.
Harmanpreet Kaur joined Rodrigues out in the middle and the pair ticked things over to make the game safe, although Pakistan captain Fatima Sana did her best to keep things alive with two wickets in two balls, getting Rodrigues (23 from 28) and Richa Ghosh (0 from 1) caught behind.
There was moment of concern late on for India when Kaur appeared to pick up an injury trying to avoid a stumping and was forced to retire hurt on 29* from 24 balls. But victory came with seven balls to spare as new batter Sajeevan Sajana found the boundary with her first delivery.
India made a slower start to their innings than Pakistan did, losing Smriti Mandhana (7 off 16) for the addition of just 25 runs in the PowerPlay. Curiously however, they sent out Jemimah Rodrigues at one-drop after just one game back at No.3 for their captain Harmanpreet.
The pair of Shafali Verma and Rodrigues kept the scoreboard ticking despite boundary-hitting proving to be difficult. Verma scored India’s first boundary off the bat in the eighth over and managed another two overs later as India reached 50 for 1 at the half-way point of the chase.
While Rodrigues was happy to target the shorter square boundaries using the sweep, Verma looked to take on the 73-metre boundary down the ground against right-arm offspinner Omaima and holed out at long-on. Her dismissal for a 35-ball 32 marked the first time she ended scoring at less than run-a-ball after facing a minimum of 30 deliveries in a T20I innings.
Even so, with the asking rate still under a run a ball, Rodrigues and Harmanpreet took India to within 26 runs off the target with five overs remaining. Sana then created a flutter of a comeback by dismissing Rodrigues (23 off 28) and Ghosh off successive deliveries. But in the assured company of Deepti Sharma, Harmanpreet took India closer to the finish line. She couldn’t actually see her team over the line after retiring hurt with two runs to get with an apparent neck sprain.
For India to get their NRR in the positive, they had to overhaul the 106-run target in 11.2 overs. However, India endured a boundary-less powerplay, with Shafali and Smriti Mandhana struggling to put away spin. Mandhana hit some crisp strokes but found the fielders in nine of the ten balls leading to her dismissal. In a bid to break free, she chipped one tamely to backward point.
On cue, Sana kept spin on for 13 of the first 15 overs. They frustrated Shafali with lack of speed, as a result of which, she missed putting some of the juicy full tosses away. India ended their boundary drought in the eighth over when Shafali welcomed Tuba with a pull through midwicket. She hit a couple of more fours before holing out to long-on.
At the other end, Jemimah Rodrigues – batting at No. 3 ahead of Harmanpreet – kept maneuvering the field and helping India inch closer. However, boundaries were hard to come by and, when India lost her and Ghosh off successive balls, it seemed Pakistan could do the unthinkable.
Harmanpreet then almost saw India home in the company of Deepti Sharma. However, she sprained her neck while turning awkwardly to avoid being stumped and walked back retired hurt. Sajana then came out to hit the winning four that helped India maintain their upper hand over Pakistan in women’s T20Is.
Presentations and Road Ahead
Smriti Mandhana the winning team member (standing in for Harmanpreet Kaur) said :(On Harman’s injury) Too soon to say anything, the medics are looking at it. Hopefully she is alright. As a bowling unit, we were very disciplined and in the field we were good too.
We could have done with a better start with the bat, but we will take this. (On net run-rate) We were thinking about it but me and Shafali weren’t able to time it well. So we didn’t want to get to a place where we were chasing the game, but NRR is surely in our heads. This game will give us some momentum and hopefully we can keep going in this tournament.
Fatima Sana the losing Pakistan skipper said : Weren’t up to the mark with batting. We were at least 10-15 runs short. Hopefully, next match we can do well. I enjoyed playing against the Indians, enjoyed my time here.
Arundhati Reddy Player of the Match for 3 wickets said : I’ve been bowling with the new ball, and had to be prepared for the powerplay. We had a good powerplay, Renuka too bowled very well. I have worked a lot on my T20 bowling, in all stages of the game. I’ll be working even harder now. It was a day game and it was pretty hot, but we are used to this weather. I just wanted to hit the stumps more, use my variations and slower ones. That has been working for me.
India’s net run rate (NRR) ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 game against Pakistan was -2.90. They had to win and win big against Pakistan for that to become positive and move up in the points table. On a hot afternoon in Dubai, though, India achieved only one of those tasks – beating Pakistan by six wickets to earn two points and open the account with a sluggish chase.
The win was set up by Arundhati Reddy and Shreyanka Patil, who combined for five of the eight wickets Pakistan lost. Pakistan huffed and puffed to 105 on the back of Nida Dar’s 28. But on a slow, spin-friendly surface.
Pakistan also used their spinners well and denied India the launchpad: they eventually got home in the 19th over with only five fours hit – three by Shafali Verma and one each by Harmanpreet Kaur and S Sajana, playing for the injured Pooja Vastrakar. Back at her familiar No. 4 spot after being promoted to one-down in the opening game, Harmanpreet was the only India batter with a strike rate over 100, in the top six.
So India chase down the small target of 106 with a bit of huff and puff, but they were always in control of the game. Their bowlers set up the game for them as Arundhati Reddy picked career-best figures of 3/19, while all the others chipped in with wickets as well. In reply, India lost Smriti Mandhana early and then were very tepid in the powerplay, ending at 25/1. However, Shafali Varma switched gears after as she got to nearly a run-a-ball, and Jemimah too got into her groove with some sweeps and reverse sweeps.
Shafali however holed out after a good start, and then Fatima Sana struck twice in two balls to leave India in a limbo. However, the Indian skipper Harmanpreet held fort from one end to ensure there were no last minute nerves. Harmanpreet went down injured, holding her neck with two runs left to spare, and then Sajana came out to complete the game
So India get off the mark for this Women’s World Cup. Their head-to-head record against Pakistan improves even further. Fatima Sana’s side fought really hard today but they just didn’t have enough runs on the board.
There were some concerns over the pace of India’s effort with the bat, given the possibility of importance of net run rate in the final Group A shake-up. The extended depth of India’s batting order thanks to the introduction of Sajeevan Sajana to the XI should have given the top order more security, and there seemed to be some discussion in the dugout over whether the chase should have sped up in the second half. But a win gets India back in the mix in Group A, with fixtures against Sri Lanka and Australia to come.
Pakistan will be disappointed that they didn’t click on the day, and will be eyeing big upsets in tricky fixtures against Australia and New Zealand in the remainder of their Group A schedule. The role of Fatima Sana will come into starker focus, with the captain again looking promising in a rapid cameo of 13 from just 8 balls, but coming in down at number seven in the order. Sana did bowl out her full allocation at least, returning the pick of the figures with 2/23.
India’s victory leaves both teams on two points after two games in Group A, and the win means India now have a 13-3 advantage in head-to-head meetings between the two nations in the format.