Vaishnavi eyes long-term role after impressive international debut
Vaishnavi made her international debut against Sri Lanka in Vizag on Sunday, with the left-arm spinner delivering a tidy performance in India’s comprehensive eight-wicket win.
Vaishnavi made her international debut against Sri Lanka in Vizag on Sunday, with the left-arm spinner delivering a tidy performance in India’s comprehensive eight-wicket win.
Having already secured their spot in the final with convincing wins against Pakistan and Bangladesh, India can afford to experiment, particularly in the middle order where Sanju Samson has struggled to find his role.
The Indian women’s team currently has the second-worst net run rate (NRR) of -1.217 in Group A and must win their remaining two matches against Sri Lanka and Australia by a huge margin to finish among the top two teams in the group.
The conditions at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium have worked in favour of the spinners and the home side has exploited them well to put a powerful Indian batting line-up on the backfoot, not once but twice in the series so far.
It was Vandersay's first international appearance since the start of the year and just his 16th match for his country since the completion of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in England in 2019, and it only came about due to an injury to first-choice spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.
In a game where the fortunes swung back and forth, India seemed to be heading towards a win after Shivam Dube smashed Wanindu Hasaranga for a six in the 47th over followed by a four in the next over by Charith Asalanka.
In Rishabh’s absence due to a horrific accident, KL donned the role in the 50-overs format for a significant period in 2023, including the ICC Men’s cricket World Cup at home and the subsequent South Africa tour.
Seven-time champions India lived up to their billing in the ongoing women’s Asia Cup by reaching a ninth-straight final where they will take on hosts Sri Lanka on Sunday.
Young batting gun and vice-captain in the white-ball formats, Shubman Gill will look to make the most of the opportunity to cement his place and others like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh and even Riyan Parag will look to do the same.
Asalanka replaced Wanindu Hasaranga as the captain after the latter had stepped down from the role earlier this month following a six-month stint that concluded with a forgettable campaign at the T20 World Cup, where Sri Lanka failed to reach the Super Eight stage.
