NAVI MUMBAI: When Radha Yadav took the field for India in the last league of the World Cup against Bangladesh at the DY Patil Stadium on Sunday, she was nervous. And understandably so. After all, it was her first match of the tournament after being on the bench for almost a month.
The rain interruptions did not help either. However, the left-arm spinner from Baroda rose above all that to take three wickets (3/30), helping India restrict Bangladesh to 119/9 in 27 overs. The only worry for India from the day was the injury scare of Pratika Rawal, who twisted her ankle while trying to stop a boundary on what was a wet outfield.
Much to the disappointment of the thousands of fans who had filled the stands, the contest started as a 43-over per side after an extended rain delay. However, by the time Radha was introduced in the 13th over, the match had been reduced to 23 overs. It meant the left-arm spinner was meant to do what she does best — bowl tight lines and attack the stumps.
Two boundary-less overs later, Sobhana Mostary eventually managed to get a shorter delivery from Radha out of the way to the ropes. Radha, however, did not get perturbed. She stuck to her plans, kept varying her lengths and trajectory while trying not to give away any easy deliveries.
Soon, the reward came when Mostary tried to loft a slow, loopy delivery but was caught at mid-off by Harleen Deol. That was the beginning. In her next over, Radha pitched one fuller and cleaned up Nahida Akter. By the time she was done, Radha had also accounted for Rabeya Khan — a classical left-arm spinner delivery to get the batter bowled. With NR Sree Charani chipping in (two wickets), India were able to keep Bangladesh to 119/9 in 27 overs. Openers Smriti Mandhana (34) and Amanjot Kaur (15) helped the hosts race to 57 in just 8.4 overs when the match was called off.
Irrespective of the result, for Radha, it was all about implementing what she had been doing every single day in the nets through this World Cup. She and Arundhati Reddy, who took a screamer of a catch to get rid of Sharmin Akhter, had been the most regular non-playing members of this bowling unit. Every match day, they would come in and start bowling on the side while the rest warmed up and got ready. During training days too, it has been the case. The duo, along with debutant Uma Chettry, would have perhaps spent more time in training than the rest through the course of this World Cup.
It all came to fruition on Sunday. “I was nervous, won't lie. I took my time to soak it in,” Radha said during the innings break. “I tried to stick to the basics and kept things simple. I think that I am India's best fielder. I enjoy my fielding. I always look forward to such opportunities, always ready for them. Nothing new for me, but I always enjoy my time in the middle. We have been practising with the wet ball; our bowling coach makes sure we all do. This is our favourite ground, we get a lot of support at this venue,” she added.
Radha’s performance on Sunday only adds to the selection headache of this Indian team as they face the mighty Australian side in the semifinal on Thursday. Whether they will include her as the sixth bowling option or not is something one will have to wait and see, but for now, Radha has made sure she has put her hat in the ring with her performance.
Brief scores: Bangladesh 119/9 in 27 ovs (Sharmin Akhter 36; Sree Charani 2/23, Radha Yadav 3/30) vs India 57 in 8.4 ovs. Match called off due to rain.
