After two fascinating and exciting games between Indian and Australian women, it was time for the third game. The series decider between the teams took place at the Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai.
The Indian women batted first and had a fun start with the bat in the powerplay. Shefali Varma and Smriti Mandhana got off to a blistering start and put pressure on the bowlers from the first over.
The duo added 39 runs for the opening stand before Meghan Schutt removed Shafali Varma for 26 runs. Jemimah Rodrigues, who came up to bat at number 3, did not have the kind of outing she would have wanted, as she only had 2 runs to her name.
After Jemimah’s wicket, India women lost the well-established Smriti Mandhana by 29 runs. This became even worse for them when Captain Harmanpreet Kaur also passed away. The captain’s poor streak continued when she was castled by Annabelle Sutherland.
Deepti Sharma tried to get going and looked good but continued with the start she got. The all-rounder managed 14 runs before Georgia Wareham eliminated her. Richa Ghosh, at the other end, looked like the only established Indian batsman as she bowled well and kept the Indian women in the game.
Rich Ghosh scored 34 runs off 28 balls that got the Indian women out of trouble. A vital handball from Amanjot Kaur (17*) at the end ensured that the hosts put a total of 147 runs on the board.
For Australia, Annabel Sutherland was the pick of the bowlers as she returned with figures of 2/12. Wareham also contributed two scalps, while Megan Schutt and Ashleigh Gardner bagged a scalp each.
IND-W vs AUS-W scorecard, 3rd T20I highlights: Australia crush India women by 7 wickets
The Australian women then got off to a good start as they put their opponents under immense pressure and asserted their authority from the start. Captain Alyssa Healy (55) scored a magnificent half-century at the top and made sure to lift the team out of a dominant start.
Healy along with Beth Mooney added 85 runs for the opening partnership before Deepti Sharma caught the Australian captain lbw. After that, Tahlia McGarth (20) chipped in and added a vital partnership with Mooney. But Pooja Vastrakar brought his team back into the game.
Pooja removed Tahlia and then on the next ball, she removed Ellyse Perry. However, Beth Mooney (52*) made sure to stay there until the end and led her team to victory. She was well supported by Phoebe Litchfield (17*) as the Australian women completed a comfortable 7-wicket win and clinched the series.
For India Women, Pooja Vastrakar was the pick among the bowlers with her figures of 2/26. She did everything she could to keep her team in the game, but It was not enough as he did not get the desired support from the other side.
Australia Women took the series by a margin of 2-1. After facing a crushing defeat in the first game, they made a strong comeback and made sure to win the next two games in a row.
Brief scores
India women: 147/6 (Richa Ghosh 34; Annabelle Sutherland 2/12)
Australia Women: 149/3 (Alyssa Healy 55; Pooja Vastrakar 2/26)