India fine-tunes batting lineup ahead of T20 World Cup
Jemimah Rodrigues discusses India’s experimentation with batting combinations and the emergence of an exciting crop of young bowlers.
India are preparing for the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup with a high-profile series against England. The series is serving as an important opportunity for India to fine-tune their playing XI and experiment with different combinations ahead of the marquee tournament.
As part of that process, India have been flexible with their batting order, particularly when it comes to star batter Jemimah Rodrigues. The right-hander batted at No. 3 during the series against Australia and South Africa earlier this year, but has been used at No. 4 and No. 5 respectively in the opening two T20Is against England.
“I think I'm comfortable at all positions. In the end, it is important for me to have clarity. And when I have clarity about a certain role, I know I can go out there and deliver.” said Rodrigues.
Highlights: Yastika Bhatia's entertaning 59
"Now is the time where we have few more games to experiment about what's the best combination that's working for the team.”
The change has especially helped Yastika Bhatia, who is getting valuable time in the middle after returning to the Indian team following a gap of nearly two years.
“Yastika was not with us also lately because of her injury. So this is the only game time that she's also getting.
"For us to have her here is a great advantage. We saw what she did in the first game, the way she batted. To come out after injury and do such a thing, it takes a lot of character.” said the 25-year-old batter.
“I'm very happy with the way she's going and very happy with the fact that, we are still willing to add a little more in batting. And that's the kind of mindset we have. And that's the mindset we are going towards.”
Rodrigues also talked highly about left arm spinner Sree Charani who had a fantastic debut series when India toured England last year and has now become one of the mainstays of the Indian team.
“I think Cherry [Sree Charani] loves England. The last time she was here, she was the player of the series. But the thing I love about her is, like, being so young, she's just taken up that responsibility as the left-arm spinner in the team.”
“She's very hardworking. She'll come and she says, sir, two overs. It ends up 24 overs every practice session because she's never satisfied."
Rodrigues was also all praise for young pacer Nandni Sharma who made her debut in the first T20I in Chelmsford. Like Charani, Rodrigues knows the pacer very well after having captained her in the Women's Premier League (WPL).
“She's very good at what she does. Whether it's slower balls, whether it's a back of the hand, length ball, a bouncer, I think as a captain, she is the kind of bowler you want in your team. Because whatever you ask, she always delivers.” said Jemimah.
“So that's how good she is, even under pressure.
“I'm very happy that she's here and all credit goes to her because of the way she's worked hard. The kind of WPL she's had, I think hats off to her.”