India Women will look to avoid a hat-trick of losses when they take on England Women in a World Cup match in Indore on Sunday.
Back-to-back defeats, against South Africa and Australia, have pegged back the Indians on their home turf. Another loss will seriously jeopardise their campaign.
Sunday’s test at the Holkar Stadium will be a tough one given that England are still unbeaten in this edition of the tournament. But it’s not beyond India to outsmart their English counterparts.
The home team will need to get their balance right and the bowlers will need to be sharper. India had failed to defend a 300-plus total against Australia.
Despite the pressure on them, India believe they are in a good mindspace before
the game.
“We have lost two matches, but our morale is very good because we played two good matches at the start of the tournament. We always go in with a positive mindset and focus more on what we have done well as a team,” all-rounder Deepti Sharma said on Saturday.
The last time the two sides met, India had clinched a memorable 2–1 ODI series win in England, and Deepti said that the result gives the side confidence heading into the crucial contest.
“The last away series against England gave us a lot of takeaways, and we won there. It’s about applying ourselves on the day. I know their bowling attack and how their batters approach the game, so I try to keep my plans simple,” she said.
The Indore wicket is not likely to be too unfriendly to the batters.