India Women take on Ireland Women in 2nd ODI: Preview
What's the story
The Indian women's cricket team is all set to take on Ireland in the second One Day International (ODI), with an eye on young talent.
India won the first WODI by six wickets, despite fielding an inexperienced side.
This win has placed them in a strong position to seal the three-match series in the next game on Sunday.
Here is the match preview and stats.
Match
India Women claim six-wicket win against Ireland in 1st ODI
In the absence of several first-team players, India enjoyed a six-wicket win in the first Women's ODI.
Chasing a target of 240 runs, stand-in skipper Smriti Mandhana led the charge with a quick 41-run inning.
Her opening partner Pratika Rawal also played a major role with a match-winning half-century. Rawal slammed 89 runs from 96 balls. She slammed 10 fours and a six.
Meanwhile, Tejal Hasabnis also contributed significantly by scoring a quick-fire half-century off just 46 balls.
Leadership skills
Mandhana's leadership and fielding concerns
Mandhana, who had earlier led India against New Zealand, handled the inexperienced squad well in the first ODI.
However, India's fielding raised eyebrows as they dropped Ireland's Leah Paul twice.
This helped Ireland recover from a wobbly 56/4 and cross the 200-run mark.
The Indian bowlers will look to get their execution right in the second match to keep Ireland under the mat.
Performance review
Ireland's performance and hopes for improvement
For Ireland, captain Gaby Lewis stood out with a commendable 92-run innings but got little support from the middle order. Leah Paul also contributed with a half-century.
However, their bowling attack struggled with only Aimee Maguire taking three wickets. The rest of the bowlers were expensive and ineffective as India chased down the target with over 15 overs to spare.
Information
Here's the H2H record
India Women and Ireland Women have played 13 ODIs to date. Notably, the Indian side has won all 13 games so far. Before Friday's match, India and Ireland last faced each other in May 2017. India won that match by 249 runs.
Stats
Players in focus: Key stats
Mandhana, who became the 3rd-fastest to 4,000 runs in Women's ODIs on Friday, leads the billing. She owns 4,001 runs at 44.95.
Mandhana had an excellent 2024, ending as the top scorer with 747 runs at 57.46, as per ESPNcricinfo.
In 4 WODIs, India's Rawal owns 223 runs at 55.75. She registered her 2nd fifty on Friday.
In 50 matches for Ireland, skipper Lewis has amassed 1,414 runs at 31.52. She owns 11 fifties.
Squads
A look at the two squads
INDW: 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.
IREW: 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.
Information
Venue and match timing
The match will be played at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot. The 2nd encounter is set to start from 11:00am onward (IST).