WATCH: Sneh Rana’s gravity-defying diving catch to dismiss Alyssa Healy stuns fans

In the opening ODI in the three-match series held at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, December 28, Australian captain Alyssa Healy was dismissed for a duck by Team India women’s all-rounder Sneh Rana, who made an incredible diving catch.

The Women in Blue amassed a competitive total of 282-8 during the first innings. Alyssa Healy faced an uphill battle when she opened the innings alongside Phoebe Litchfield. During the second innings, Renuka Singh got things started with the new ball. During this she got Healy to drive away the third ball of the over. The ball grabbed a thick edge as the right-handed hitter, who was not in the finest of form upon connecting, leaned into the stroke.

The ball was thrown near the short third area, where Sneh Rana completed the grab by diving full length towards her left. This provided Team India with the much-needed early breakthrough. Sneh Rana’s batting performances was still not the finest. She managed only one run prior to Megan Schutt bowled her in the 38th over, leaving India struggling at 182-7.

India Women and Australia Women playing out a classic 

Against Australia, India’s 282 emerged to be their greatest ODI score. Australia pulled off a thrilling victory at the 2022 Women’s World Cup versus. They will be hoping for something along these lines. In that game, Alyssa Healy scored a rapid seventy-two. Meanwhile Meg Lanning, the skipper at the time, added a match-winning ninety-seven.

Meg Lanning declared her retirement just prior to the tour. Now that both of the aforementioned players are out of the picture, Australia will need to look elsewhere for support if they hope to win the first ODI against India.

Phoebe Litchfield and Ellyse Perry stitched an important 148-run partnership. This stand proved to be a crucial one in order to get the Australian team back in the chase. Both the players are now back in the pavilion, as the new batters look to settle down and chase the total set by the hosts.