REVIEW
Follow UsThe finalists of the 2017 edition of the Women's World Cup, India entered the iconic event in the beautiful land of the Kiwis as one of the favourites to lift the coveted title.
After their painful defeat in the summit clash of the mega event at the Home of Cricket, our protagonists underwent gruelling hours of sessions away from the glaring eyes of the media to overcome the scars in the finale.
With an aim to give two stalwarts of Indian cricket and possibly world cricket a fitting farewell, India set foot at the Bay Oval against arch-rivals Pakistan for their opening match.
In a campaign filled with plenty of ebbs and flows, the fortunes of the Indian side were hanging by a thread, and it was down to the final match of the league stage against South Africa.
And the equation for the Women in Blue was simple: Win the game and seal your place in the semi-finals.
While it may seem easy, there were up against a high-flying Proteas side, who were aiming to bounce back from their only defeat in the competition against the mighty Australians.
In the 100 overs that followed, the two sides exhibited skills of the highest calibre to enthral the fans at the Hagley Oval and provide a perfect recipe for a Sunday blockbuster.
However, it went all the way down to the wire as the Women in Blue had to defend seven runs off the final over. Despite all the drama surrounding the no-ball off the penultimate delivery, as Mignon du Preez clipped the ball towards the leg side, a billion Indian hearts shattered.
While it was tough for the fans across the globe, spare a thought for the players involved, especially Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami, who were in all likelihood featuring in their last world event.
And now that the sun has finally set on India's campaign, we at cricket.com analyse the aftermath of their performance and the way ahead for the team.
India's middle overs muddle
"I think too much importance is given to strike rate"
A couple of days before the Indian women's team embarked on their journey to the southern hemisphere for a series against the White Ferns and the World Cup, Mithali Raj firmly stated the over importance given by the fans regarding the strike rate of the team in a pre-departure conference.
Over four years after India's fairy-tale run in the 2017 edition of the extravaganza, one of the recurring drawbacks for the side has been the lack of impetus by the batting unit in the middle overs.
In the span of two months, with the five-match series and the seven matches in the league stages of the World Cup, the Women in Blue have struggled to rotate the strike in the middle overs resulting in enormous pressure in the back end of the innings.
And this World Cup was no different as the two of India's premier batters, Mithali Raj and Harmanpreet Kaur, struggled with their strike rate in the middle overs.
In the five innings played thus far in the middle overs, the skipper of the side has amassed 171 runs at a strike rate of 66.8, the worst among players with a minimum of 150 runs.
While Mithali struggled to find the boundaries on a consistent basis, her deputy too was unable to get the ball to the boundary cushions in the middle overs as she scored 183 runs at a strike rate of 73.5 in seven innings.
With the conditions conducive for batting, the Women in Blue often struggled to break the shackles in the middle overs, resulting in their downfall.
Inability to create inroads
Over the years, India have relied on Goswami to create inroads in the opposition batting unit, and the veteran seamer, to her credit, has responded well to the task.
However, in the past couple of seasons, India have failed to find an ideal new-ball bowler to partner Goswami in the first ten overs. Additionally, her own form heading into this iconic event was an area of concern for the team.
In the seven innings, India have managed to scalp six wickets in the first ten overs at balls per wicket of 70 and an economy rate of 4.6 runs per over, the worst among all the teams in the competition.
Aggressive bowling in the middle overs
While they have managed to pull things back in the middle overs, with the spinners and Pooja Vastrakar doing the trick for the team, the Indian team ought to work on a plan with the new ball to ensure the opposition teams do not get away in the field restrictions.
In the seven innings of the league stage, India have picked 37 wickets at balls per ratio of 32.7, the best among all the teams in the competition. One of the reasons for their improved performance is the emergence of all-rounders Sneh Rana and Vastrakar.
The duo have scalped ten wickets each and helped the Women in Blue crawl their way back into the contest.
The art of crumbling under pressure
In the three world events, including their summit clash of the 2020 T20 World Cup, India have faltered in crunch games or failed to seize their opportunity and get over the line.
With a plethora of changes expected in the coming days, the Indian team can work on the mental aspect of the game and ensure the next time they foot on the ground with renewed energy and rejigged approach.
