She anchored the innings with a fine fifty and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur said her focus was on “rotating the strike” as India recovered from a tricky position to post a match-winning 201 for five against UAE in the women’s Asia Cup here on Sunday.
India were in a spot of bother after being reduced to 52 for 3 but Kaur (66 off 47 balls) stitched two crucial partnerships, adding 54 runs off 39 balls with Jemimah Rodrigues (14) and 75 off 45 balls with Richa Ghosh (64 not out) to put India in a commanding position.
In reply, UAE could manage just 123 for 7.
“It is a great feeling. When Jemi and I were batting, we spoke that we had to run hard rather than just going for risky shots. Our focus was on getting 7-8 runs per over,” Kaur said after the match.
“When Richa came, I just told her to keep watching the ball and see how the wicket is playing. She batted beautifully. My role was just to stay on the pitch and keep rotating strike. Whenever loose balls come, convert them to the boundary.”
While Kaur played the anchor’s role to perfection, it was Ghosh’s 29-ball knock which helped India score their first-ever 200-plus total in T20 cricket.
“Credit to Richa. Because of her, we reached the target … today also we lost early wickets but we kept ourselves ready.”
Richa Ghosh, who was adjudged the player of the match for her 29-ball unbeaten 64, credited Kaur for guiding her in the middle and said she just backed herself to make the most of the opportunity.
“Whenever I am playing with Harry [Harmanpreet] di, she tells me how the ball is coming on and how to play the shots. Whenever I get the opportunity, I want to back myself,” she said.
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