India’s women’s cricket player Jemimah Rodrigues. File Photo: Vijay Soneji/The Hindu

Scoreboard:-

INDIA: Smriti Mandhana c Dempsey b Prendergast 73 Pratika Rawal lbw Dempsey 67 Harleen Deol c Delany b Kelly 89 Jemimah Rodrigues b Kelly 102 Richa Ghosh c Sargent b Prendergast 10 Tejal Hasabnis (not out) 2 Sayali Satghare (not out) 2 Extras (LB-2, W-23) 25 Total (5 wickets, 50 overs) 370 Fall of wickets: 1-156, 2-156, 3-339, 4-358, 5-368.

Bowling: Orla Prendergast 8-0-75-2, Ava Canning 10-0-51-0, Arlene Kelly 10-0-82-2, Freya Sargent 9-0-77-0, Alana Dalzell 5-0-41-0, Georgina Dempsey 8-0-42-1.

IRELAND: Sarah Forbes b Deepti 38 Gaby Lewis c Richa Ghosh b Satghare 12 Christina Coulter Reilly b Sadhu 80 Orla Prendergast c Satghare b Priya Mishra 3 Laura Delany lbw Deepti 37 Leah Paul (not out) 27 Arlene Kelly b Deepti 19 Ava Canning b Priya Mishra 11 Georgina Dempsey (not out) 6 Extras (B-5, LB-9, NB-1, W-6) 21 Total (7 wickets, 50 overs) 254 Fall of wickets: 1-32, 2-87, 3-101, 4-184, 5-188, 6-218, 7-234.

Bowling: Titas Sadhu 10-0-48-1, Sayali Satghare 9-1-40-1, Saima Thakor 9-0-50-0, Priya Mishra 10-0-53-2, Deepti Sharma 10-0-37-3, Pratika Rawal 2-0-12-0.

Indian women captain Smriti Mandhana expects her young team to perform one more time to seal the ODI series against Ireland Women.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Following a commanding performance by the youngsters in the opening match, India will eye another clinical display from them to seal the three-match series when they face Ireland in the second women’s ODI in Rajkot on Sunday (January 23, 2025).

Despite fielding a relatively inexperienced side, Indian women enjoyed a perfect day in the first ODI, registering a six-wicket win to take a 1-0 series lead.

Captain Smriti Mandhana continued her fine form, laying the foundation with a forceful 41, while the efforts of Pratika Rawal and Tejal Hasabnis, who shared a 100-plus partnership to steer the chase, were crucial.

Their performances are a big boost for the team, especially with regular skipper Harmanpreet Kaur missing from the lineup after she was rested for this series.

Pace spearhead Renuka Singh, the highest wicket-taker in the previous series against the West Indies, was also rested for this series.

In her absence, young Titas Sadhu stepped up, striking in her first spell. Sayali Satghare also impressed, taking a wicket, while Saima Thakor bowled a tidy 10-over spell.

Spinner Priya Mishra had a notable outing with two quick wickets, and vice-captain Deepti Sharma also played her part.

Mandhana, who had previously captained India against New Zealand, managed the inexperienced squad in excellent manner, and the management might be pleased with the bench strength ahead of the home ODI World Cup later this year.

However, India’s fielding was subpar in the first ODI.

They dropped Leah Paul twice, allowing Ireland to recover from a precarious 56 for 4 to go past the 200-run mark. The Indian bowlers will also look to execute their plans in a better way to keep Ireland under 200 and close out the match with much more ease.

For Ireland, captain Gaby Lewis played the lead act with a superb 92, but lacked support from the middle order. Paul, benefitting from her chances, also struck a half-century. Ireland will need more intent from other batters to challenge India.

The biggest disappointment for Ireland was their bowling attack.

Apart from Aimee Maguire, who took three wickets, the rest of the bowlers were expensive and ineffective as India chased down the target with more than 15 overs to spare.

Sitting at the bottom of the Women’s Championship table and failing to qualify directly for the World Cup, Ireland will need a complete lift in their performance level to secure their first-ever women’s ODI win against India.

Squad (from): India: Smriti Mandhana (C), Deepti Sharma (VC), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Uma Chetry (wk), Richa Ghosh (wk), Tejal Hasabnis, Raghvi Bist, Minnu Mani, Priya Mishra, Tanuja Kanwer, Titas Sadhu, Saima Thakor, Sayali Satghare.

Ireland: Gaby Lewis (C), Ava Canning, Christina Coulter Reilly, Alana Dalzell, Laura Delany, Georgina Dempsey, Sarah Forbes, Arlene Kelly, Joanna Loughran, Aimee Maguire, Leah Paul, Orla Prendergast, Una Raymond-Hoey, Freya Sargent, Rebecca Stokell.

Match starts at 11 am.

India opener Pratika Rawal (89) and Tejal Hasabnis ( 53 not out) scored fifties to help the hosts overhaul the target in 34.3 overs against Ireland. File
| Photo Credit: bcci.tv

Pratika Rawal showcased maturity beyond her experience, while Tejal Hasabnis capped a memorable comeback, posting a fifty each, as India outplayed an inexperienced Ireland by six wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match women’s ODI series in Rajkot on Friday (January 10, 2025).

Rawal anchored the modest run chase of 239 after stand-in skipper Smriti Mandhana’s brisk 41, smashing 10 fours and one six for a career-best 89 (96 balls).

Hasabnis, who last played an ODI against New Zealand in October 2024, struck her first fifty after her comeback, remaining unbeaten on 53 off 46 balls with the help of nine boundaries.

Rawal and Hasabnis put together a match-winning 116-run partnership from 84 balls with India winning the match with 93 balls to spare.

Carrying forward her dominant form from the West Indies series, Mandhana gave the team a fantastic start with a blistering 29-ball 41, studded with six fours and a six. In the process, she became the second Indian and 15th overall to surpass 4,000 ODI runs.

Mandhana unsettled the Irish bowlers with her attacking strokeplay on both sides of the wicket. Her aggression was particularly evident against seamer Dempsey in the eighth over, when she stepped out to hammer a boundary, followed by a six and another four.

Her rookie opening partner Rawal, who debuted in the preceding West Indies series, provided excellent support.

The duo shared their third fifty-plus opening stand in four matches, keeping the scoreboard ticking with ease.

However, Ireland managed a breakthrough right at the end of powerplay when Mandhana mistimed a slog sweep to mid-on, falling nine runs short of her fifty.

Harleen Deol (20) and Jemimah Rodrigues (9) looked in good touch initially, but clever bowling by left-arm spinner Aimee Maguire (3/57 from 8 overs) stalled India’s momentum temporarily.

The 18-year-old Maguire lured Jemimah into stepping out too far, resulting in a stumping when the batter was at least a foot outside her crease.

This phase saw India lose three wickets for 46 runs, but Mandhana’s explosive start ensured the team stayed well on par.

The inexperience of Ireland came to fore as they failed to seize the momentum, leaking 21 runs in extras.

Laura Delany was the weakest link in their bowling unit and she bowled successive no balls with two waist-high full tosses in the 24th over when Hasabnis cashed in on the opportunity to hit back-to-back fours from the two freebies.

Earlier, butter-fingered India let Ireland off the hook with their pathetic fielding as visiting skipper Gaby Lewis carved out a classy 92 to lift her team to a respectable 238 for 7.

Opting to bat, Ireland were in deep trouble at 56 for four in the 14th over, but Lewis and Leah Paul (59 off 73 balls) added 117 runs for the fifth wicket to steer their team to safety.

Lewis scored her runs in 129 balls, lacing the knock with 15 boundaries.

Aided by at least three clear dropped catches and a few misfields, the duo of Lewis and Paul went about their job in a calculated manner and brought a semblance of stability to the Ireland innings while putting together the team’s first-ever century partnership against India.

Medium pacer Titas Sadhu effected the first breakthrough for India when she induced an outside edge from Sarah Forbes (9) after the batter tried to play away from her body, and Deepti Sharma did the rest in the slip cordon.

Making their first visit to the country, Ireland were reduced to 34 for two thanks to a terrible mix-up that led to the run out of Una Raymond-Hoey (5), who attempted an inexplicable single despite hitting the ball straight to Jemimah Rodrigues at cover.

Orla Prendergast (9) was next to go as she was stumped by Ghosh off the bowling of leg-spinner Priya Mishra (2/56), leaving the visitors in a spot of bother at 56 for three in the 14th over.

Riding high on a dominant performance against the West Indies, India under Smriti Mandhana will look to carry forward their winning momentum when they take on Ireland in the first-ever women’s bilateral series. FIle
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Riding high on a dominant performance against the West Indies, India under Smriti Mandhana will look to carry forward their winning momentum when they take on Ireland in the first-ever women’s bilateral series, with the opening ODI scheduled in Rajkot on Friday (January 10, 2025).

India had swept the West Indies 3-0 in the ODI series, following a 2-1 triumph in the T20 series. Mandhana emerged as the top run-scorer across both formats, scoring 148 runs in the ODI series, including two half-centuries, and amassing 193 runs in the T20s, with three successive fifties.

Notably, she scored five consecutive half-centuries, only missing out in the final ODI and Mandhana will look to bring the same form as she leads the team in the absence of regular captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who has been rested alongside fast bowler Renuka Singh.

With Kaur and Renuka missing, the responsibility shifts to the rest of the batters, including Harleen Deol, Pratika Rawal, and Jemimah Rodrigues, to step up.

Deol was the top scorer in the ODI series with 160 runs, including a brilliant 115, while Rawal and Rodrigues also had solid outings, scoring 134 and 112 runs, respectively, with a fifty each in the ODIs.

In the bowling department, Renuka’s absence will be felt as she was the leading wicket-taker with 10 wickets in the ODI series against the West Indies.

The onus will now fall on newcomers Titas Sadhu and Saima Thakor to make their mark.

Sadhu, 20, who has three wickets in ODIs and 13 wickets in T20Is, will be expected to provide early breakthroughs, having impressed with her pace and swing in domestic and recent international cricket. Saima, 28, will also look to continue her good form after taking seven wickets in eight ODIs so far.

Vice-captain and off-spinner Deepti Sharma will be crucial, especially after her career-best bowling performance of 6 for 31 in the third ODI against the West Indies. Priya Mishra and Tanuja Kanwar will play key roles in supporting Deepti.

Eyes will also be on all-rounders Raghvi Bist and Sayali Satghare, who have been included in the squad for this series. Bist has the ability to score quickly and is also a reliable fielder. She will look to seize the opportunity after making her debut in the WI T20 series.

Ireland, led by Gaby Lewis with all-rounder Orla Prendergast as her deputy, will face a tough challenge against India.

The Irish team has never beaten India in the 12 ODIs they have played against them, with India winning their last encounter in the 2023 T20 World Cup by a narrow five-run margin.

However, the Irish team boasts some quality all-rounders, with Prendergast likely to be a key player. Having gained experience in Australia and the WBBL, she will look to bring that to the fore as Ireland takes on the formidable India at home.

Squad:

India: Smriti Mandhana (C), Deepti Sharma (VC), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Uma Chetry (wk), Richa Ghosh (wk), Tejal Hasabnis, Raghvi Bist, Minnu Mani, Priya Mishra, Tanuja Kanwer, Titas Sadhu, Saima Thakor, Sayali Satghare.

Ireland: Gaby Lewis (C), Ava Canning, Christina Coulter Reilly, Alana Dalzell, Laura Delany, Georgina Dempsey, Sarah Forbes, Arlene Kelly, Joanna Loughran, Aimee Maguire, Leah Paul, Orla Prendergast, Una Raymond-Hoey, Freya Sargent, Rebecca Stokell.