The capital of any cricketer is his performance on the field. The figures bear witness to it. How many runs scored, how many centuries or ha...
It was a golden opportunity to fulfill this dream in the ongoing 50-over World Cup in New Zealand. The team was also on the right track but there was no charismatic performance from young talent and experienced players. Indian women also played an ODI series with hosts New Zealand to adapt to the conditions ahead of the World Cup.
The series also exposed many of his flaws. Sadly, India could not learn any lessons from these weaknesses. There was no uniformity in the performance of the batsmen. When he put up a respectable score, the bowlers failed to defend him. In the 'Do or Die' match against South Africa, Deepti Sharma hit a no ball in the last over, due to which the bet got out of hand. South Africa knocked India out of the World Cup by scoring the last ball. There were more mistakes in the league campaign. Things like dropping catches at crucial times, not converting good starts into big scores and slow batting in the powerplays will always be bothersome.
In fact, the Indian team itself made the way for its farewell. The defending champions England were on the verge of being eliminated in the tournament after losing the first three matches. We succumbed easily against that discouraged team. The entire team rolled out for 134 runs. If India had played that match in a strong way, then this situation would not have happened. But we gave him the mantra of victory. Didn't expect such a disappointing performance from the team. England, finding their momentum with this victory, won the next three matches and made it to the semi-finals. Luck also favored the West Indies team. Their match against South Africa was washed out in rain. Points were divided and the West Indies were sailed. Australia emerged as the top contenders for the title by winning all their matches.
Where mistakes have been made, it will definitely be brainstormed. But Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami did not get the farewell they should have. The most pain has reached them. One was playing the sixth World Cup and the other fifth. Well, both can take pride in their international careers. Mithali made many achievements in a career spanning 22 years and Jhulan for 17 years. Records were also registered in his name in this World Cup.
Mithali became the player to score the most half-centuries in the World Cup. Mithali broke New Zealand's Debbie Hawkley's record of 12 centuries in 43 matches by scoring 13 fifties in 36 World Cup matches. His achievements include scoring the most runs in ODIs and becoming the first woman cricketer to score 10,000 international runs. Not only this, he also has the distinction of scoring a half-century as the youngest and oldest player in the World Cup. Jhulan Goswami will regret that she could not play the last match. He had to withdraw from the match due to pain. During this time she played her 200th ODI match and became number one by taking more than 250 wickets.
Now everyone is waiting for Mithali Raj's next step. Will she retire from cricket or play more now? By the way, even at the age of 39, he is quite fit. 64 fifties in ODIs would have inspired him to keep going. Maybe he stayed with the team for two years and handed over the responsibility of captaincy to another player. Mithali sees the future of women's cricket bright with the positive performance of the players in this World Cup, but the failure of two World Cups is alarm bell for coach Ramesh Powar.
- KTP Bureau
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