Harmanpreet says we played ‘forcefully’ in conditions that were ‘not 100%’

Indian women’s team captain Harmanpreet Kaur feels their team forcefully played in wet conditions in the first T20I against England Women on Saturday, 10 September, at Chester-le-Street, where the match was delayed because of rain before the start.
 
The Women in Blue suffered a huge defeat in the first of the three-match T20I series. After winning the toss, England asked India to bat first in damp conditions, where India struggled with the bat as they were able to manage just 132/7 in 20 overs. Leg spinner Sarah Glenn was the pick of the bowlers from England, who took 4/23 off her four overs.

That's that from the first T20I.

England chase down the target in 13 overs. Win by 9 wickets and go 1-0 up in the series.

Scorecard – https://t.co/F0BWspRvjN #ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/PV1MUjExDs

— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) September 10, 2022

 
The England batters easily chased down the target in just 13 overs, with Sophia Dunkley scoring an unbeaten 61 off 44 balls after being out caught on a no-ball by Renuka Singh in the first over. Despite the defeat, Harmanpreet was happy with the team and the effort of her players.
 
While the outfield was sluggish and a bit slippery due to wetness, Indian fielders were poor in the field, dropping catches and misjudging the balls to let them go for a boundary. “I think in the end we were not able to get that many runs as we were expecting,” Harmanpreet said after the match. “I just feel today was forcefully played because it was not 100% conditions for cricket to play. Still, I am happy with the way girls put in the effort because when there are chances to get injured, they are ready to play.”
 
“That’s what you need to have team-mates in the team who can score in whatever conditions, and I am happy with the way we put our efforts.”
 
Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Deepti Sharma were the only batters who managed to score 20 or above as England’s leg-spinner Sarah Glenn troubled the Indian batters along with off-spinner Bryony Smith and left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone. Glenn and Smith picked up five of the seven Indian wickets. Mandhana started well by scoring boundaries against the pace bowlers. But the dampness of the pitch helped the England spinners as the ball held up on the surface and often stayed low as well.
 
Harmanpreet Kaur got out bowled when she tried to step out to a good-length delivery by Glenn, which didn’t quite bounce as expected by her. In the last few overs, Deepti Sharma helped India get past 130 with an unbeaten 29 off 24 balls with 3 fours.
 
Another setback for India in this match was when Radha Yadav got injured when she dived to her left field at a backward point. She walked off the ground immediately in pain, making India’s chances more difficult. Sophia Dunkley and Alice Capsey capitalised on the opportunities and helped England to win the first T20I with 9 wickets with 7 overs to spare. 
 
“I know the ground was too wet and there were so many chances to get injured, and one of our bowlers got injured also. She was our main bowler and that’s why we were lacking,” said Harmanpreet.
 
With Radha unavailable to bowl, Harmanpreet used herself and Shafali Verma, and those two overs went for a combined 28 runs. She also had to use more overs from off-spinners like Deepti Sharma and Sneh Rana against England’s right-hand batters in the absence of Radha, who, as a left-arm spinner, can take the ball away from them.
 
“We were one bowler short and the way we were trying to put our efforts meant a lot. I am really happy that girls were coming forward to give 100%,” said Harmanpreet.
 
India Women will look to bounce back and level the series when they play their second T20I match against England on Tuesday, September 13, in Derby.