22 February - Cape Town - India player Richa Ghosh pre-match press conference
[Reporter]
Whenever Australia play, they go into the match as hot favourites and ahead of the semi-final, this is being predicted that Australia are the hot favourites to win that. Do you first of all agree with this or do you feel that Australia are a defeatable side?
[Richa Ghosh]
We can beat Australia, it’s not that we can't beat them - because we did it in the last series in India and we did it before as well. Yes, they are a strong team, but we can beat them!
[Reporter]
Richa, as a wicket keeper, you can see the whole field, you can know the weaknesses and strong points of the teams. Have you noted some of the weaknesses of Australia in this tournament that you can hurt them?
[Richa Ghosh]
Yes, we have worked out the weak spots and planned for that too. But if we share the weak points, they will obviously be ready. So, I don't want them to be prepared for anything right now and help them get any information.
[Reporter]
Is there any update on Radha Yadav? How is she feeling?
[Richa Ghosh]
Only the physio and the coach know. We don't know much about her.
[Reporter]
You made your debut in the 2020 T20 World Cup Final. How much have you grown in the last three years?
[Richa Ghosh]
I didn't make my debut in the final, by the way. I made my debut in the Tri-Series Final.
[Reporter]
And you came in the final as a concussion substitute. Yes. So, how has your growth been since then?
[Richa Ghosh]
There are ups and downs. I also had ups and downs in between. But I have learned a lot from that. Like how to handle a situation. And when I go for batting, how to handle the pressure. So, that has improved a lot.
[Reporter]
How do you see Australia as an opposition?
[Richa Ghosh]
They are a strong opposition but we will see how things pan out in the match.
[Reporter]
I would like to know one thing. When you go up against such an important team like Australia, what is your mindset? Because the whole world is saying that Australia is such a strong team. They have won so many World Cups. India's record has not been very good. Is this so important? Or do the players say that what has happened has happened in the past? How do you see it?
[Richa Ghosh]
We are improving our mindset. Because the game is everyone's. The one who is mentally strong in the game, will win. So, we are working on that. Let’s see what happens.
[Reporter]
It is also believed that if any target is in front of Australia, they chase it. So, is this a conscious effort that if we want to win with Australia, we have to win the toss and do the fielding. Which we will chase the target. Because it seems a little bit that otherwise, whatever the target is for Australia, they are more comfortable in chasing it.
[Richa Ghosh]
It is comfortable for them because they have a strong batting order - till the last. And we have it too. No doubt. But, now, toss is not in anyone's hand. Whatever comes, we will have to see the situation and work. We are not thinking about what to do. But we are ready with the plan. If we bat first we will try to score big and if we bowl, we will see how much we can restrict them for.
[Reporter]
Last question. Like the U-19 team came to South Africa. They became champions. Then WPL came. Do you think that for all the girls of this team, this is going to be the biggest match – because WPL is also coming up, and if India wins against Australia, then it seems that they can defeat anyone in the final. I mean, it is very close to winning the trophy.
[Richa Ghosh]
Yes, it is true. Because if we defeat Australia, then the confidence will be boosted even more before the final. And it will be very good for the WPL too.
[Reporter]
I want to ask that the way you are going, the way you have batted in this World Cup. You were not out three times. You have finished the match. You were out on the first ball in one match. How do you approach mentally? I mean, you don't care about who the bowler is. You don't care about situation. How will you approach your innings?
[Richa Ghosh]
Like, I just look at the ball and try to play. Who is bowling and what is the situation - Situation matters. How the pitch is behaving. But I mainly focus on one ball at a time. And I focus more on looking at the ball and playing. Because when we think that a bowler is a top bowler, then we start to get nervous. But I don't want that. So, I just look at the ball and play.
[Reporter]
One more thing according to me. Like you played with Australia back home. The success you were getting in that series. Here you are not getting that much success on this ground and also in the club. Is there a difference in the boundaries? Because your power rating and success is a big thing for the Indian team. Are you working specifically to clear that? And how will you approach this boundary?
[Richa Ghosh]
It mainly depends on the situation. If you want a lot of runs, then we can look for a big shot. But if you are happy with the fours or singles or doubles, then there is no point in taking the risks. So, I will try to play the way the situation demands.
[Reporter]
How much confidence do you have from the fact that India are the only team to have beaten Australia in the last two years?
[Richa Ghosh]
When you beat Australia, you get a lot of confidence. Because they are a good team. A strong team. So, yes, that does help.
[Reporter]
So, Richa, we have seen that when India played against a big team like Australia or England, they started very well at some point and then suddenly lost the match. We have seen the CWG Finals and Commonwealth Games Finals - Recently, we could win the match against England in 29-for-3. So, what are the team's thoughts on this situation?
(Richa Ghosh)
What can I say? We had planned. We everything tried according to the plan. But it didn't work out. So, we have kept it simple. What should we play? What is the plan? So, we have kept it simple.
[Reporter]
You have played against Australia before. If you have to pick a few things from the Australian team that you would like India to have, what are the qualities that you like most in the Australian team which makes them very, very strong?
[Richa Ghosh]
They attack a lot. So, whatever happens to them, even if the batter is out, they don't stop attacking. WE also have good batting depth, so will be playing an attacking game.
(Reporter]
All the best for tomorrow's semi-finals. Richa, you have performed very well in this tournament. But your form was not as good in the Under-19 World Cup, which India won. What changes have you made in your game to improve your performance in this tournament?
[Richa Ghosh]
I did not get very many chances but did my best. I focused more on my game. I wanted to win the World Cup and bring the confidence here. So, I am doing what I wanted to do.
(Reporter)
Okay. My second question is that, as we all know, Australia is a very strong team. What do you think about tomorrow's match? If India bats first, what will be the total that will challenge Australia? If you are bowling first, what will be the total that your bowlers will want to restrict to Australia?
[Richa Ghosh]
The pitch looks good but we don't know how it will behave tomorrow. I think we will hope to set a target of 180 if we bat first and our batters click. If we bowl first, we will be looking to keep them to 140-150. Because their batting line-up is good. So, we will try that.
[Reporter]
Richa, as we can see that you've got expertise in playing pull shots, can you tell us a little bit about how much you have worked on the pull shot because Australia is good at using short balls? As we can see that you have evolved a lot in playing the pull shot skillfully. How did that happen and with whom have you worked on that?
[Richa Ghosh]
Mainly, the pull shot was my favourite since childhood, pull, lofted, and all. Because in the domestic there was not enough opportunity to play the pull shots. So, it was stopped. But when I played the first international match against Australia, they were targeting me with short balls and short-pitched balls. They were giving bouncers to get me out. So, after that, I worked on it and started working with the coaches, the Indian team coach as well as my own state coach. So, that's how it is.
[Reporter]
Richa, how do you feel working with Sachin Mondol? You have a good relationship with him. I saw that you have a good rapport and working relationship with him. What is his contribution to your form in the world cup since you spend more time with him on the net? What do you discuss with him in the throw-down stack and how do you try to approach so that you can perform well in the match?
[Richa Ghosh]
Since both of us speak Bengali. So, it's easy for us to communicate about what they can do and what I can do to play the ball. So, we try to communicate with each other accordingly. He's helping me on how can play this type of shot, and what kind of pace bowling will be there. So, we work like that and that helps a lot. And Kranti also helps me a lot. I am working with both of them.
[Reporter]
In 2022, India won in the super over in Navi Mumbai. You played a big role in that. You helped India to chase the target. Do you have any memories from that match or the innings that you have kept in your heart or do you think about that many times because it was a big match for India? There were 47,000 spectators.
[Richa Ghosh]
The crowd also helped me a lot. They supported me a lot and the situation was created over there that "Sister" Smriti also told me to finish the match. So I took it that way. And Devika also helped me a lot. She helped by scoring the last boundary. She fulfilled the trust we built. Super over was for me. It was a happy moment for me to hit the six on the first ball.