‘Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat is not firing, Smriti Mandhana was….’ – Former India cricketer pinpoints batting mistakes in 2nd T20I vs Australia women

The Australia women’s team beat the India women’s team by six wickets in the second T20I game on January 7 at DY Patil Sports Academy. Speaking about the game here, it was Australia skipper Alyssa Healy who won the toss and invited India to bat first in the game. Notably, after being sent to bat first, the host could only manage 130/8 in the given 20 overs. However, Australia chased down the total with one over to spare.

However, former India cricketer Reema Malhotra has opened up about India’s batting mistakes in the second T20I, which didn’t allow them to seal the series against strong visiting sides. The former all-rounder feels Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur failed to give India a great start, which restricted them to a narrow total in the given 20 overs. In addition, the 43-year-old cricketer also talks about the shots played by Indian batters.

“Batters got starts but none of them ensured that they stood at one end and made a big score. The way Smriti Mandhana was batting, she looked in good nick to me after a long time, the sort of shorts she played. Short and sweet, she could have prolonged that knock. The opening partnership didn’t fire but Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat remaining silent is a cause for concern. Harmanpreet Kaur generally plays the sweep shot but when you get the top edge, the ball goes in the air,” Reema Malhotra said on Sports 18.

The good thing is that India didn’t play that bad cricket: Reema Malhotra

Reema Malhotra feels India women’s head coach Anmol Mazumdar needs to step up to make sure India continues to bat in the middle order if the top order falters. Moreover, the cricket analyst feels Team India is not playing bad cricket and had a great chance to bounce back in the series-deciding game.

“I am sure Amol Mazumdar will talk about it, that once a batter gets set, she should make sure that she plays a big knock because Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat is not firing and Amanjot Kaur is not doing anything special in the middle.  The good thing is that India didn’t play that bad cricket,” she added further.