Depicting intent and overcoming complacency: Indian Women Team’s need of the hour

The Indian Women have won the T20I series against an eighth-placed Sri Lankan side. But the series victory has been far from convincing. After producing impressive performances in the first two T20I matches, the island nation caused an upset in the third encounter. Riding on the skipper Chamari Athapaththu's stellar 80 off 48 balls, Sri Lanka avoided a whitewash. 

One would have expected the Indian team to be dominant, but they have narrowly managed to eke out a 2-1 win. 

Granted, there has been some experimentation and improvisation with the batting order. There is also no denying the inexperience in bowling, especially in the pace department. But are these valid reasons for a modest showing against a low-ranked side? 

The Indian batters have been guilty of being content with 130-140 run totals in T20I matches. However, the game has evolved enormously, and the Indian team must adapt to the T20I format. 

Making most of the Powerplay overs, occasional boundaries with good strike rotation in the middle and a fiery finish at the death should be the template. 

The quality of opposition should not govern their risk-taking intent. Otherwise, when players like Athapaththu get going, no total appears small; no bowling can stop a power-hitter of her calibre.

An Alyssa Healy-starring Australian top order would make full use of the Powerplay overs to lay the foundation for a big total. And then the likes of Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning, Ashleigh Gardner, and Tahlia McGrath would come in to keep the strike rate high.

 If the Indian team hopes to challenge the big guns, complacency must be eliminated. After the third T20I, captain Harmanpreet Kaur spoke in the same light:

"We did have partnerships but needed a better strike rate. This score wasn't enough. We need to work on our strike rates a bit." 

Another challenge is to improve on the quintessential problem of sloppy fielding and dropped catches. "Catches win matches" might be the most-used cliche, but it stands true. 

The missed chances against the Lankans did not come back to bite the team in the first two encounters. But it certainly did in the final fixture. Athapaththu was dropped twice on her way to an unbeaten 80. And the Sri Lankan captain did not fail to punish the opposition for their lacklustre show on the field.

With the Commonwealth Games coming up, the Women in Blue will need to work on these aspects and put their best foot forward.