Shafali No Longer Just A Powerplay Batter, Puts A Price On Her Wicket: Reema Malhotra

Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International:  Former India all-rounder Reema Malhotra said Shafali Verma has evolved from an all-out powerplay hitter into an opening batter who values her wicket and bats with responsibility beyond the first six overs. Reema went on to call Shafali as the best women’s T20I batter in the world right now.

Shafali smashed 55 off 24 balls in India's nine-wicket win over Zimbabwe in the second T20I at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur on Sunday. It also included her sharing a 96-run opening stand with captain Smriti Mandhana as the hosts sealed the three-match series 2-0.

In T20Is this year, Shafali has scored at a blistering pace. Her 922 runs come at a strike rate of 165.52 and include 42 sixes. Among the top eight run-getters in women's T20Is this year, Smriti, with a strike-rate of 150.1, is the only other batter to score at a strike rate above 150.

"Whenever Shafali Verma gets off to a good start with the bat, you immediately see the opposition get on the back foot. She puts that pressure on the bowlers and when she is playing a typical Shafali Verma knock, the middle order gets the freedom to bat without pressure.

“Smriti, on the other hand, plays the role of the anchor because she knows that Shafali will take care of the quick scoring, which balances out the way India bat. One major change that we have seen in Shafali's batting is that she is not just a powerplay batter like before.

“Even after the end of the first six overs, this new version of Shafali bats with responsibility. She has changed her mindset and is putting a price on her wicket. For me, that is the most important thing. And in T20I cricket, I would rate her as the number one batter right now," said Reema to JioStar.

She was also impressed with Smriti's leadership, and praised her willingness to back her instincts rather than follow a set template. "I am really liking the way Smriti is captaining this Indian side. The way she's managing the players and getting them to play the way she wants is really good to watch. She doesn't stick to one fixed template.

“She reads the game and makes her own decisions. She gave Nandni Sharma the new ball, used Niki Prasad in the death overs to make the youngster learn how to handle the pressure, and when the Zimbabwe batters looked like they would find a way to come back into the match, she brought on Shafali Verma into the attack to slow things down.

“It shows that she's not scared of the pressure that comes with the Indian team's captaincy. I have always liked the way she has led RCB and she is putting all her WPL captaincy experience to good use for the Indian team."

Reema further lauded the discipline of the Indian pacers, but cautioned that the real tests lay ahead, by equating the Zimbabwe series to a semester exam, the tour of South Africa to the pre-boards and the Women's Champions Trophy to the board exams.

"The discipline and clarity with which the Indian pacers bowled in this second T20I was really impressive. It is not just about wickets. What matters more is the areas you bowl in, how you set traps for the batters, and whether you can execute what you set out to do.

“That clarity was evident in the Indian fast bowlers' performance. But a lot of work still needs to be done, because this series against Zimbabwe are the semester exams for the Indian team, the upcoming Tour of South Africa is going to be the pre-board and the Women's Champions Trophy is your board exams.

"The discipline and clarity with which the Indian pacers bowled in this second T20I was really impressive. It is not just about wickets. What matters more is the areas you bowl in, how you set traps for the batters, and whether you can execute what you set out to do.

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Article Source: IANS