Ashish Ranjan
INDw vs AUSw: India’s chances of winning the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 were dashed by a 5-run loss to Australia in Thursday’s semi-final. Team India captain Harmanpreet Kaur’s bizarre dismissal at a crucial moment added to a string of knockout losses that ended India’s hopes (February 23). The nerves of the Australians prevailed over the heroics of Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemima Rodrigues.
INDw vs AUSw Highlights: Harmanpreet was run out at a crucial moment during India’s semi-final match against Australia in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023. The India captain, who played despite being ill, was playing magnificently to reach her fifty and put her team in position to chase down Australia’s 172/4. A strange occurrence, however, sent Kaur back to the pavilion when her bat became lodged in the wicket as she attempted to run it in, leaving her short of her ground as Alyssa Healy removed the bails. She was out of 52 rounds.
Tough luck Team India. #HarmanpreetKaur & #JemimahRodrigues looked like taking the game away but the Aussies fought back brilliantly & in the end India have fallen short. Harmanpreet’s runout was the turning point & India will be disappointed to miss out on the finals. #INDWvAUSW pic.twitter.com/RY06QHDrE0
— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) February 23, 2023
Fans recalled a similar incident from the semifinal between India and New Zealand in the 2019 ODI World Cup. As long as former captain MS Dhoni was in the middle, India still had slim prospects despite losing a number of wickets early on. However, Dhoni was run out after scoring a half-century due to a superb throw by Martin Guptill, effectively ending India’s hopes.
Harmanpreet, visibly disheartened after the game, expressed her immense disappointment at India’s failure to win a game that had appeared within reach. “It’s impossible to be unluckier than this, to lose momentum while I and Jemi were batting. And to lose after that, we did not anticipate today’s events. It cannot get any worse than how I ran out of money. Putting forth effort was more crucial. We discussed fighting until the last ball was played. Harmanpreet stated in a post-match presentation that, despite the loss, he was satisfied with the team’s performance in this tournament.
“We are confident in our batting order, even if we lose early wickets. Jemi deserves credit for her batting performance today. She provided us with the momentum we desired. Thrilled to witness such performances. I’m pleased to see them playing their natural game. Despite not playing to our strengths, we advanced to the semifinals. We lost those simple receptions. Those must be taken if you want to succeed. We misfielded. We can only learn from these errors and not repeat them,” the captain added.
After her bizarre run-out against Australia in the semi-finals of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, India’s captain Harmanpreet has received support from other cricket luminaries. VVS Laxman, the head of the National Cricket Academy, took to Twitter to express his support for the India captain, stating that Harmanpreet’s run-out was the turning point of the match.
“Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues appeared to be in control of the game, but the Australians fought back admirably, and India ultimately fell short. Harmanpreet’s run-out proved decisive, according to VVS Laxman on Twitter.
Match winner at the crease and Run out in a semi-final. We have had this heartbreak before. Sad to see India out. Were running away with the game but Australia proved again why they are a v difficult side to beat. Well tried girls #INDWvAUSW pic.twitter.com/wNsVc3vb2D
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) February 23, 2023
And former Indian opener Virender Sehwag was not the only one to notice the similarities between the renowned dismissal of one Indian captain and the dismissal of another Indian captain in a major match. “Winner at the crease and out in the semi-finals. We have experienced this heartache before. It’s sad to see India go. Australia has once again demonstrated why they are an extremely difficult team to defeat. Well tried ladies #INDWvAUSW,” Virender Sehwag tweeted.
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The 69-run partnership between Jemimah Rodrigues (43) and Harmanpreet swung momentum in India’s favour. Harmanpreet made an excellent fifty. However, Australia maintained composure to deny India a spot in the final.
