NAGOYA: Harmanpreet Kaur and her battle hardened peers have trotted the globe plying their trade. They know the best grounds across the world and their playing conditions. So when they reached the Korogi Athletic Park everything seemed alien to them.
The ground was a makeshift cricket ground with three sides barricaded with high baseball nets. The pitch is hybrid and the setting stunningly beautiful. The team adapted to the conditions as expected with ease. It was sunny and the sky was deep blue with the highlands in the background. There were volunteers at each crossing to guide pedestrians to the venue. There was a mix of Indian, Sri Lankan and Japanese crowd as Harmanpreet and Co went about doing what they know the best. Electing to bat, score a mammoth 216 for three in their allotted 20 overs. Sri Lanka did not last long, getting out for just 69 runs. Match itself seems too one-sided and bereft of excitement except when India batted.
Getting used to conditions is nothing new to the team. But in Japan they had to adapt to something they have not encountered earlier except the pitch. Yet they were prepared for the predicament of playing on a different kind of wicket.
Harmanpreet said as much after the victory ceremony. "We were playing on a hybrid pitch and having recently played on hybrid pitches in England, we knew that this would offer a bit more bounce" she said. "However, they didn't change the pitch. Initially, they said only the first game would be on the hybrid pitch and that we’d return to turf pitches after that. But because of the rain and weather, I think they weren't able to prepare the second set of pitches — the turf ones. So we knew hybrid pitches hold up well — they provide good bounce and good pace. And since matches were happening back-to-back, we figured the wicket might slow down a bit. That actually worked in our favour because our spinners were getting nice revs and good turn off the pitch. Even though we had never played in Japan before, we adjusted ourselves accordingly." In fact the team enjoyed every bit of what was on offer. "We enjoyed whatever was there, however it was our mindset that the faster we adapted to the situation, the better it would be for us."
The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side often keeps chasing the perfect game in big events. And at times, as seen in the T20 World Cup this year, they struggle to bring their A game in time and miss out. This Asian Games, however, was different. They were always expected to win, but what would please the team management and the BCCI was the way they dominated.
Though no Asian opponents are a match for them on paper, T20 is a fickle format. And on a given day, Sri Lanka could have toppled India. But the Women in Blue brought out their perfect game to beat Chamari Athapaththu's side and secure the country's first gold in the 20th edition of the continental event.
For the Indian women, it was a repeat of their performance from the Hangzhou Asian Games, but this time, there is a lot more to take away. They have become a stronger Asian side in the last three years, but the growth of Shafali Verma as an all-rounder, who can deliver consistently, was a big boost. Shafali, who has become a much more consistent batter in the last 18 months, scored her first white-ball ton in international cricket after making her debut in 2019. The same could be said about Richa Ghosh, who has found her rhythm as a finisher, but is yet to be utilised to the best of her abilities. The likes of NR Sree Charani and Nandni Sharma have come up the ranks. Then there is Smriti Mandhana continuing to do what she does best, scaling new peaks, breaking records. The captain-in-waiting and deputy to 37-year-old Kaur has been reiterating why she is the best batter in the country and perhaps even the world.
While this milestone came as a massive tick in the box, the real challenge will be when India take the field in the Women's T20 Champions Trophy against the top teams on home soil in less than six months. They will want to replicate such dominance there and build on the momentum towards growing the women's game in the country.
