NAVI MUMBAI: It was the third ball of the 49th over during India's record chase against Australia on Thursday night. By then, the 35,000 fans, millions watching, including the team and support staff in the dugout, knew that India had it in the bag. It was a moment of when rather than if. They needed four runs to win and had five wickets in hand, including that of Jemimah Rodrigues batting on 127 and Amanjot Kaur in the middle.
India captain Harmanpreet Kaur, her deputy Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma, and head coach Amol Muzumdar were all sitting in the dugout, trying to hold back tears, waiting for it all to be over. Amanjot, in a hurry to finish off the chase and let it all out, lofted a floated up delivery from Sophie Molineux down the ground. It almost ran to the ropes, but Georgia Wareham put in a full-length dive to pull it back. Mandhana turned to Harmanpreet, gesturing not just yet; that they have to hold it together until they are across the line.
The moment did not take long as Amanjot cut the left-arm spinner for a four on the very next ball. Harmanpreet let out a roar, so did Deepti and Muzumdar before embracing each other in joy, while Mandhana and the rest ran to engulf Rodrigues and Amanjot in the middle. They knew that they had achieved — a historic run chase to eliminate Australia and enter the final of a home ODI World Cup. They had understood the magnitude of it all and the pressure they were under right from the beginning and through the course of the campaign even though they might not have publicly admitted as much.
After all, their road to the final had been anything but perfect. They kicked off with wins against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but crumbled under pressure against Australia and South Africa. Muzumdar kept reiterating that they start well but have to finish well too. They had issues with letting go of the momentum and the lack of depth in the bowling attack after opting to play only five of them.
Every time, it seemed like they needed a loss to course correct. Whether it was a discussion on strike rate or playing six bowlers or dropping Rodrigues, it all seemed reactionary. They came to Navi Mumbai under immense pressure after three consecutive losses. They brought back Rodrigues and played her at 3 as India played a near-perfect game against New Zealand — with only five bowlers. Ahead of the semifinal, they had lost Pratika Rawal and had drafted in Shafali Verma in her place. They knew if they wanted to have a chance at beating Australia, they needed more.
For the first time in this World Cup, India fielded what was possibly the best starting XI — six bowlers and Rodrigues at No 3. However, even on the field, it was not a perfect game. Not to the least in the first 50 overs. Dropped catches and misfields did not help their cause, with Australia going on the offensive. They lost Verma and Madhana early. Promoting Rodrigues to No 3, on both occasions, had been a last-minute call and not a pre-match plan.
They, however, knew the only way to beat Australia was to hang in there. They waited, played a long game. And more importantly, they were confident of chasing anything Australia put on the board. Both Deepti and Amanjot would later explain that they expected Australia to score 370-380. "If they had posted 400, we would have chased it as well," Amanjot told reporters after the match. They also knew it should not be a repeat of England, where Amanjot tried to take it deep and it became too little too late. "I had a chance, but I didn't finish the match. I didn't play Australia's seven balls. So the scenario was different, and I didn't want to leave it at any cost," said Amanjot. India did what their coach had been reiterating — they didn't just start well, but stayed till the end and finished off the chase.
Skipper Harmanpreet revealed the dressing room interaction after the England loss and the shift that happened afterwards. She said that a disappointed Muzumdar talked to the players "aggressively" and they all took it in good spirits.
"We all trust, whatever sir says (referring to Muzumdar). Whatever he says, he says from the heart. That day, he was a little aggressive, but in a good way. But everybody took it positively, because we knew whatever sir was saying, and he was right. After that, I spoke to all our team members because I wanted to see where they are. I know sir is expecting the right thing from us. That is not something which the entire country is expecting from us — the way we've lost that match, but I think everybody took it in a very positive way," Harmanpreet told broadcasters standing next to Muzumdar.
"I think there was a shift after that England game; everyone was charged up. I could see the change. In fact, we spoke amongst the coaching staff that there was a little bit of a shift in when we practised the next time. There was a lot of energy, a lot of intensity. Not that there wasn't earlier, but you could make out there was a shift," the latter added in the same interview.
That shift helped India get their campaign back on track. However, the job is not done, and they know it too. It took so much out of this team to beat Australia, but as Amanjot said, they have to leave it behind and start fresh. "We have three days. We have to recover in three days. Again, back to practice. Back to basics. Now, if we think of it as a big game, then there may be some nerves and excitement. But as a normal day, a fresh day, we will start from zero," said Amanjot before laughing. "Right now, I want to sleep. We have run deep into our energy. It feels a little."
Indeed, the players will get a well-deserved rest before starting fresh again. For they know what is at stake — their first-ever ICC title — on Sunday.
