Women’s T20 WC: Harmanpreet’s fifty in vain as Australia beat India to reach semis
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur's unbeaten 54* went in vain as Australia beat India by nine runs in Group A match to reach Women's T20 World Cup semi-finals on Sunday.
Supernovas captain Harmanpreet Kaur heaped praises on her bowlers after beating the Smriti Mandhana-led Trailblazers in the last league match of the ongoing Women’s T20 Challenge in Sharjah on Saturday.
Defending a target of 147, Supernovas kept the pressure on the batting side throughout the innings and ensured that the Trailblazers fell two runs short.
“It was very close, but hats off to our bowlers. Finally, they withstood the pressure and bowled according to the field,” said Harmanpreet in the post-match presentation ceremony.
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“All the girls wanted to win, and it showed in the end. The way we started, we were thinking of 150-plus, but what we got was a defendable total because it was helping the spinners if you bowl a little short and give them singles rather than boundaries.”
Chamari Athapaththu’s 67 off 48 and her 89-run partnership with Priya Puniya (30 runs) were the brightest prospects of Supernovas’ innings.
Chamari fell soon but skipper Harmanpreet Kaur chipped in with valuable 31 as her side managed to post a decent total on board.
“I know this total wasn’t so big. We had to bowl three good overs. Finally, after a good partnership, we were able to get breakthroughs and they got us back in the game,” said Harmanpreet.
Just when Trailblazers were four runs short of victory, with two balls to be bowled, Radha Yadav (2/30) turned the match in Supernovas’ way when she got the better of Harleen.
With four needed off the final ball, incoming batter Sophie Ecclestone failed to score the required runs and her team finished at 144/5 in 20 overs.
The win helped the Supernovas seal a place in Monday’s final where they face Trailblazers once again. “We will try our best. After winning, our confidence is high and hope we do it again in the final,” she said.
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