Emotions Cost India in Narrow World Cup Defeat

News Desk

Indore: Smriti Mandhana has taken the blame for India’s dramatic batting collapse against England in their Women’s World Cup clash on Sunday night at Indore, where the team fell four runs short while chasing 289.

India appeared well-positioned at 57 needed from 57 balls with seven wickets in hand, but a flurry of dismissals saw them finish on 284 for 6, with Mandhana top-scoring at 88 off 94 balls. Left-arm spinners Sophie Ecclestone and Linsey Smith bowled six of the final nine overs, restricting India’s chase.

“We could have done better with our shot selection,” Mandhana admitted at the post-match press conference. “It started from me, so I will take it on myself. We just needed six runs per over, maybe we should have taken the game deeper. I had to be more patient, but the emotions took over for that one shot, which never helps in cricket.”

Facing Smith from around the wicket, Mandhana attempted an inside-out shot over the covers but mistimed it straight to long-off. “I thought I could take her on, but the shot wasn’t needed at that time,” she said. “Walking back, I was confident we could win, but cricket doesn’t work that way. If you lose, even a good innings doesn’t mean much.”

The collapse continued as Richa Ghosh chipped a catch to Heather Knight at cover, followed by Deepti Sharma’s slog-sweep to deep midwicket, ending India’s hopes. Mandhana stressed that the finish was not dependent on any single player. “We just needed 6.5 runs per over. It wasn’t a lot to ask, and other players like Aman [Amanjot Kaur] and Sneh [Rana] have delivered in similar situations,” she said.

The match also sparked debate over India’s team selection. Jemimah Rodrigues was dropped in favor of an extra bowler, Renuka Singh, despite India chasing in this fixture.

Mandhana defended the decision, citing team balance and the nature of the track. “It was a tough call to drop a player like Jemi. Sometimes you need to make such decisions to get the balance right. This combination won’t necessarily be used for the rest of the tournament. We’ll see the situation and the pitch before making decisions,” she explained.

India’s bowlers, however, performed admirably. Renuka Singh conceded just 4.62 runs per over in her eight overs, and Deepti Sharma’s 4 for 51 helped trigger a collapse of 6 for 77, marking her 150th ODI wicket—making her only the second Indian woman after Jhulan Goswami to reach the milestone. 

Mandhana lauded Deepti’s all-round contribution. “She has been brilliant over the past ten years. Her ability to read the game, bat, and bowl has been amazing,” Mandhana said.

Despite the heartbreak, Mandhana remains focused on learning from the experience. “I have to be more patient in the last few overs. The emotions took over, and I’ll take responsibility for that,” she concluded. Input from cricinfo website.