Vaishnavi’s Spin Powers India to Victory After Harmanpreet, Deepti Hundreds

Vadodara: Indian women thrashed Zimbabwe women by 121 runs in the 2nd ODI on Sunday night.  The victory sealed the series, handing India an unassailable 2-0 lead over the Lady Chevrons.

After scoring huge 328 runs on the board, the hosts bowled out the visitors at just 207 runs in 48.5 overs. SpinnerVaishnavi Sharma took 4 wickets for 39 runs in 10 overs while Deepti Sharma grabbed 3 wickets for 32. Playing her 2nd ODI Jintimani Kalita claimed the final wicket of the innings.

Earlier, veteran batter Harmanpreet Kaur said her 124-run third-wicket partnership with Pratika Rawal laid the foundation for India’s recovery, before Deepti Sharma’s ‘magic’ ensured the hosts reached 328/6.

Harmanpreet, who top-scored with 126 off 121 balls, laced with 15 boundaries, further said batting in the day after a long run of evening matches had made batting conditions tough, especially after India lost Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma inside three overs.

The former India captain shared a record 153-run stand for the fifth wicket with Deepti, who hit 106 not out off 86 balls, laced with 15 boundaries, and said she was happy to take a back seat and rotate the strike as the off-spin bowling all-rounder found the boundary with ease at the other end.

Harmanpreet, who was dropped three times while making her eighth ODI hundred, added that the pitch did not play true early on and the focus was on staying at the crease.

Reflecting on her partnership with Pratika, who made 61 off 67 balls, Harmanpreet credited the Zimbabwe bowlers for their early discipline and said the two right-handed batters had worked out a clear plan to rebuild the innings.

While the Zimbabwe bowlers were only moderately accurate with their lines, it was their sloppy fielding that hurt them the most, with several catches going down at crucial moments. It would be interesting to see if they can make a match out of it in the second innings. Agencies

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