3rd WT20I: India smash 147/6 against Australia; Richa Ghosh shines
What's the story
India smashed 147/6 against Australia in the 3rd and final Women's T20I at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai. Notably, 12 of these runs came in the final over bowled by Ashleigh Gardner. Richa Ghosh smashed a solid 34(28), studding her knock with some scintillating strikes. Annabel Sutherland and Georgia Wareham took two wickets each for the Aussies.
PP
India lose Shafali Verma in Powerplay
India were off to a terrific start after Australia invited them to bat. While Smriti Mandhana took her time to settle down, Shafali Verma played a counter-attacking knock. However, the latter fell to Megan Schutt for a 17-ball 26. Mandhana stepped up thereafter, scoring two boundaries in the sixth over. India were 51/1 in the first six overs.
Overs
India stumble in middle overs; Ghosh strikes
The next four overs saw Jemimah Rodrigues (60/2), Mandhana (64/3), and Harmanpreet Kaur (66/4) departing in quick succession. Deepti Sharma joined Richa Ghosh for a while but departed before the 100-run mark. Despite all odds, the latter attacked the Aussie bowlers and took India past 120. Ghosh smacked a couple of big sixes to break the shackles.
Mandhana, Shafali
Feats for Shafali, Mandhana
Shafali smashed 26 off 17 balls, a knock laced with 6 fours. She has raced past 1,600 runs in the format. Her compatriot Mandhana slammed a 28-ball 29 (2 fours and 1 six). She got past 3,100 WT20I runs during the knock. Notably, Mandhana earlier became the second Indian woman with over 3,000 runs in the format.
Schutt
Most wickets in WT20Is
Megan Schutt took a solitary wicket for 36 runs in four overs. Australia's premier pacer took only one wicket in the three-match WT20I series. Notably, Schutt has gone past Nida Dar to become the highest wicket-taker in WT20Is. The former broke a tie and now has 131 wickets from 105 matches at just over 17. Nida is behind Schutt with 130 wickets.
Information
Highest score of the series
India's 147/6 (3rd WT20I) is the highest score of the ongoing three-WT20I series. The hosts chased down 145 in the series opener, while the second game saw Australia chase 131.