A team finds itself in the right frame of mind when its senior and experienced players deliver on the big stage. In the ongoing Women’s T20 World Cup, India Women too need their senior pros to be at their sharpest if they are to go the distance in the competition.
The comfortable 64-run win over Pakistan Women saw both Smriti Mandhana (68) and all-rounder Deepti Sharma (5/10) leading from the front to give India Women the kind of rousing start they needed in this World Cup.
But Smriti’s performance aside, Deepti’s form matters a little more for India as bowling has been an area that has bugged the side, especially in World Cups
Pace attack isn’t India’s strength, which too makes spinner all-rounder Deepti’s role even more important in this tournament. Deepti’s experience was equally important for India in the business end of their maiden Cup triumph in 2025, when they emerged champions of the Women’s ODI World Cup last November.
Since then, Deepti has certainly grown in stature as well, but what certainly bodes well for India is her readiness to deal with pressure situations, which will be the key in the remainder of their T20 Cup journey.
“I like the pressure situations and the ICC tournaments. I feel I have started again from where I had finished, so it feels good.
“I’m focusing on my process, which is about the things I do in practice and look to apply in matches,” Deepti said at the post-match news conference following India’s win over Pakistan in Birmingham on Sunday.
“These things help me. The only thing is that I have to keep moving forward, and not stop. Day by day, I have to keep improving.”
The 28-year-old was also a member of the Indian team that finished runners-up in the 2017 ODI World Cup in England.
Reflecting on her journey since then, Deepti said: “When you look at a young Deepti and now the senior Deepti, it feels very good. Looking back at the earlier matches and the 2017 World Cup, I learnt a lot from that tournament. Rather, I learn from every game, especially when the errors are taking place and the areas where I can be better.
“Then, I regularly talk to AavishkarSir (India bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi) about my strong points. I watch video clippings of my action, so I think there is always a learning from every match... Doesn’t matter whether you are winning or not.
“You are considered a good player only when you think about how to improve despite your good qualities. For me, every game is important and I’m just looking to contribute in each of them.”
Against Pakistan, Deepti dismissed opener Gull Feroza, Ayesha Zafar, Aliya Riaz, Nashra Sandhu and Tasmia Rubab, after scoring an unbeaten 12 of 9 balls, where she was also a part of an important 45-run stand with Richa Ghosh for the seventh wicket in just 3.3 overs.
“I kept my plans very simple and just had self-belief so that whenever such situations arose, I stepped up. And since there was slight turn on offer from the pitch, I ensured to land the ball in the good areas and tried to be as consistent as I could.
“The speed too was crucial on that pitch, so I was varying it every over, and that helped me,” Deepti said, looking back at her performance.
Facing tournament first-timers Netherlands next on Wednesday in Leeds, India have another chance to work on their weak areas before facing a much stronger South Africa and Australia later in this group stage. “We aren’t taking the Netherlands lightly, though. Every game counts,” Deepti stated.
