Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana registered the third-best opening partnership for India in the Women’s T20 World Cup on June 17 (Wednesday), putting on 115. While Mandhana scored 74 off 47, Shafali slammed 55 off just 38 deliveries to get India off to a flying start.
Shafali and Mandhana have been opening for a while now and complement each other quite well. Shafali, who also chipped in with three wickets with the ball, reveals how her opening partner doesn’t allow her to get carried away.
“She’s very mature. She keeps telling me, because I feel like hitting 18 runs on 6 balls, but she’s the one to keep me calm. Play along the ground. So I think she helps keep me calm, and she spoke very well with me today, was making me understand on every ball – so yeah – it was very nice, we had a 100 run partnership and we are also trying to do the same in the upcoming matches,” Shafali said in the post-match press conference.
We know how to rotate strike
The 22-year-old also believes that the duo knows how to keep the scoreboard ticking, and at the same time knows when it is time to go big.
“The best thing is that whatever shots I can’t hit, she hits them and she has the best seat to tell me what I’m doing is right or wrong, and then even I have the best seat to tell her the same. I think we both know how to rotate the strike, that if a spinner comes, then who has to take the strike, if a left arm comes, then who has to strike,” she said.
“We have been playing with each other for many years, so we both know who is to be given which strike, so we know about each other a lot.”
Update on Shreyanka
In what could be a major blow for India, Shreyanka Patil injured herself after bowling just one ball against the Netherlands. She was stretchered off the field immediately. Asked for an update on the spinner, Shafali said, “She went for a scan. The BCCI doctor team is taking care of her.”
With two wins in two, India are at the top of Group A. They will hope to keep their momentum going when they take on South Africa next on June 21 (Sunday) in Manchester.
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