Cricket at Asian Games 2023: India Women reach semifinal after Malaysia washout

Shafali Verma (right) smacked the first six in Indian cricket’s Asian Games history as she deposited Ainna Hamizah Hashim's first ball over the midwicket rope. (Photo: PTI)

Riding Shafali Verma’s 67, and unbeaten knocks of 47 and 21 from Jemimah Rodrigues and Richa Ghosh, respectively, India, led by Smriti Mandhana, made an emphatic statement of intent with the bat on their debut at the Asian Games women’s cricket competition in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou on Thursday morning against Malaysia.

The first-time participants scored 173 for 2 in a run-curtailed 15-overs-a-side match but intermittent showers after a delayed toss forced a washout two balls into Malaysia’s chase. As a result, by virtue of a higher ICC T20I seeding, fourth-ranked India advanced to the semi-finals over the 27th ranked Malaysia. India, favourites for the gold medal, will next take the field on Sunday, September 24, when both semi-finals will be held.

India dominate powerplay but Mandhana falls to offspin again

India trotted to 62 for 1 in the first six overs after Malaysia, coming off a 22-run win against Hong Kong, sent them in under overcast conditions. Mandhana, captaining the side in the absence of the suspended Harmanpreet Kaur, clocked India’s first boundary - a four - of the day in the second over, dispatching a luscious full-toss off offspinner Mahira Izzati Ismail. Shafali joined the party soon after, smacking the first six in Indian cricket’s Asian Games history as she deposited Ainna Hamizah Hashim's first ball over the midwicket rope.

Malaysia's first change with the ball, captain Duraisingam, almost got them the breakthrough in the fourth over, if only sloppy fielding, a glaring shortcoming within Malaysia’s armory, didn’t keep hindering their efforts. On 18, Shafali dragged a full ball from Duraisingam to long-on, but was dropped by Nur Arianna Natsya. The over ended with Smriti Mandhana hitting two back-to-back fours, the second involving a fumble from the backward square-leg fielder.

Shafali Verma added another six runs to her tally before rain stopped play after the fourth ball of the sixth over. Until then, Mandhana, for her part, had targeted the region between deep midwicket and square leg to good effect throughout her 16-ball knock. She swatted Aisya Eleesa for four in that arc to bring up the team 50 off just 29 balls.

Mandhana, who was prolific at the Hundred in the UK last month during her side Southern Brave’s title-winning campaign, tried going across the line to Ismail’s fuller ball, darted quicker through the air, but only ended up lobbing it up towards the point fielder. Hashim ensured the catch was completed without any dramas; the dismissal, Mandhana's 23rd to right-arm off-spin in T20Is, reinforcing the left-hand batter’s susceptibility to fingerspin, especially in the powerplay. She perished for 27.

Shafali motors on after rain stoppage; Rodrigues, Ghosh fire

Play resumed at the Pingfeng Campus Cricket Field after nearly 70 minutes since the first spell of showers grounded play to a halt. The match, consequently reduced to a 15-overs-a-side contest, saw Shafali keep her foot on the accelerator while Jemima Rodrigues took measured risks early on before stepping on the gas.

A ball after India went past 100, Rodrigues switched gears with a pick-up four towards fine leg, a sweep she adroitly pulled off on her knees. The 23-year-old right-hand batter followed it up with a cut past point next delivery that sent the ball racing away for another four.

The 13-run 10th over from offspinner Natsya gave way to a 15-run shellacking in the 11th. Twelve of those came off consecutive sixes from Shafali, the first – muscled straight down the ground – bringing up her sixth T20I 50.

Richa Ghosh, making a comeback into the side after being left out of the squads for the tour of Bangladesh in July, made a meal of the Malaysian attack. In at No. 4, after offspinner Mas Elysa trapped Shafali lbw in the 13th over, Ghosh tonked Elysa 4,6,4,4 in the final over that fetched India 20.

Her crackling 7-ball 21 gave India the final flourish that India expects of her as a pinch-hitter in the middle order. Rodrigues, meanwhile, had a chance to reach her 50, but only a single off the final ball meant the No. 3 batter remained unbeaten on a quickfire 29-ball 47, with India setting Malaysia a target of 174.

Pacer Pooja Vastrakar, who replaced the injured Anjali Sarvani in the squad, took the new ball. But Malaysia’s chase was only two-balls old when rain returned. This time around, once the players were off the field, play was decisively called off after about half hour.

Women’s cricket at multi-sport major events

The nine-team women's cricket competition at the Asiad is the second major tournament the women’s game has featured in in as many years as far as multi-sports events go. At the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Australia took the gold medal as the Harmanpreet Kaur-led India proved second-best to Meg Lanning’s side in the eight-team competition.

At the ongoing 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Thailand have been granted direct entry into the quarterfinals of the women’s event, based on their ICC T20I rankings. Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia and Mongolia had to compete in the qualifiers that were held on September 19 and 20, with each game in the Asiad being a knockout.

The inclusion of women’s cricket in major events in recent years is testament to the rapid growth and surge in popularity of the women’s game, and is a major draw card for cricket’s potential inclusion at the Olympics, with the sport – featuring both the men’s and women’s T20 events – presently in the running to be included at the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympic Games.

India XI in India vs Malaysia: Smriti Mandhana (captain), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Kanika Ahuja, Richa Ghosh (wicket keeper), Deepti Sharma, Devika Vaidya, Amanjot Kaur, Pooja Vatsrakar, Minnu Manni, Rajeshwari Gayakwad.

Malaysia XI India vs Malaysia: Ainna Hamizah Hashim, Winifred Duraisingam (capt), Mas Elysa, Wan Julia (wk), Mahirah Izzati Ismail, Aina Najwa, Wan Nor Zulaika, Nur Arianna Natsya, Aisya Eleesa, Nur Dania Syuhada, Nik Nur Atiela