CHENNAI: Of late, there has been more than one instance when India women’s ODI skipper Mithali Raj emphasised on the need to give youngsters opportunities. Though India suffered a 0-3 whitewash against Australia in the recently concluded series, the positive for the hosts was the performance of two young players, Jemimah Rodrigues and Pooja Vastrakar. Specifically, it was their ability to absorb pressure in crunch situations and contribute valuable runs.
Jemimah made her ODI debut in the first match. In the absence of Raj, who was ill, she batted at No 3. It wasn’t a memorable outing, as she fell to leg-spinner Amanda Jade Wellington for one. Raj’s return for the second game pushed her out, but after coming in for Punam Raut in the third ODI, Jemimah made her mark.
The target was 333 and the 17-year-old from Mumbai made her selection worthwhile with a knock of 42. Though her effort did not quite make her the talk of the town, the way she whacked the Aussie bowlers in that cameo made people take notice. She hit seven fours and shared an opening stand of 101 off 13.4 overs with the left-handed Smriti Mandhana.
This got praise from the skipper. “The (opening) pair definitely did well. It gives the young girl a lot of confidence and we do see a good future for her. But we need to develop more youngsters, so that we have a bigger pool in the coming years and not struggle like we did in the last couple of years when we didn’t have a second-string. We have it now thanks to India A tours,” Raj had said after the last match.
Vastrakar, who made an impression with her 56-ball 51 in the opening match after coming in at 117/7, is a promising all-rounder. The 18-year-old from Madhya Pradesh tallied 87 runs in three matches, second-best for India after Mandhana’s 131. Though she is yet to open her account in terms of wickets, Vastrakar had sub-six economy rates in the first two games.
After making her international debut in South Africa last month, Vastrakar revealed how she improved her batting before the home series. “In South Africa, my batting flopped. I usually practice a lot with my coach. But I was getting out to short balls. And the pitches there were quite quick. So I went home and worked on perfecting my batting. I practised for two to three hours. Since I like to go after spin, I was able to clear the ropes against the Australian spinners,” Vastrakar said.
srinidhi@newindianexpress.com