Harmanpreet Kaur, Renuka Singh Thakur
Reflexes
- The Indian women’s team lost in the first match of the Commonwealth Games
- Harmanpreet Kaur’s brilliant half-century entries were in vain
- Renuka Singh caused a panic with the ball but did not win
CWG 2022 IND vs. AUS: In the first match of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, two players from the Indian team performed well against Australia. This performance was going to win the hearts of all the fans, but it could not win the game for the team. Batting first at Edgbaston, Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur played a brilliant half century. He played an extravagant inning while batting at number four. Bowling in the second inning, fast pitcher Renuka Singh threw tremendously. Her bowling was going to create panic in the Australian countryside but in the end the result came against the Indian team.
Harmanpreet’s Half-Century Tickets Didn’t Work
When Captain Harmanpreet came to bat, the Indian team’s score was 68 runs in 9.1 overs. She batted almost to the end and tried to increase the run rate at every possible opportunity. She batted for over 10 overs and during this time four Indian batsmen came back from the other side. While Harmanpreet was on the crease, windows continually falling from the other end slowed the pace of the race. Even though the captain was ready, the Indian team’s mid-low order completely failed. Although Harmanpreet scored 52 runs on just 34 balls with a strike rate of 152.94, the team’s score could only reach 154.
Despite Renuka’s brilliant bowling, the match slipped.
Renuka Singh gave a dream performance in this match. She sent four kangaroo batsmen into the pavilion in her first three overs. She entered her first over without giving Alyssa Healy a chance to open the account. In her second over, Australian team captain Meg Lanning was sacked and in the same over she also took the wicket from dangerous batsman Beth Mooney. The story did not end here, in the third over of it, Renuka also caught Tahila McGrath on the way to the pavilion. This fast bowler from India topped Australia’s highest order in her three overs alone. The platform was well set up for India’s victory, but the lack of fast bowlers in the team pushed India on the defensive later on.
Renuka expressed her disappointment in the situation, saying that Edgbaston’s pitch needed another fast pitcher. If Pooja had been a clothing designer, the result might have been different.
The Indian women’s team has to play the next Commonwealth Games match against Arch Rivals Pakistan on Sunday 31st July at this ground. The lesson from the loss to Australia is that in the next match, India will not make the mistake of going out on the field with just two fast shooters.
