India women vs England women: Consistent batting failures a worrying sign for hosts in lead up to T20 World Cup
FirstpostIndia have now lost five consecutive Twenty20 Internationals after they went down to England by 41 runs in the first of the three-match series in Guwahati, and yet again it was the batting that failed. After opting to field first in the first T20I, India could have restricted England much below 160 had Arundhati Reddy not given away five fours to Heather Knight in the 18th over. In the first T20I in New Zealand this year, India’s chase of 160 looked under control when Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues were in the middle. Mandhana and Rodrigues set the platform for a big total with a 63-run stand in the second T20I, but India could get only 135 for 6 and New Zealand chased down the target off the game’s last ball. India have little time to address this issue ahead of the T20 World Cup in Australia early next year, but the team management would have been really impressed with the way Shikha Pandey bowled.