Indian bowlers sizzled throughout the one-off Pink Ball Test as the game ended with a draw. After India put up 377/8 and declared while the Australians declared today at Dinner after making 241/9. Indians then put on 135 and declared while Australians made 36 for 2 before both the captains decided to shake hands looking at how little time remained in the game.
Earlier in the day, Gardner and Perry made half-centuries before Sharma removed Gardner. Then Meghna Singh removed the lower middle-order and the tail reducing Australians to 241/9, with four batters getting out for single digits. Then Meg Lanning declared the innings with Perry’s 68* being the standout effort and a rescue act in retrospect.
During the Indian innings, Shefali Verma struck an impressive half-century, Mandhana made 31 adding 70 runs as openers, once again putting on a substantial partnership for the first wicket. Afterward, Punam Raut played a quickfire 41 runs innings and India declared at 135/3.
Australia lost Healy early as Goswami got her twice in the game. Beth Mooney fell to Pooja Vastrakar who remained a constant threat with the ball in both innings. Overall, Goswami struck thrice in the game while Vastrakar topped all ballers with four wickets. Smriti Mandhana won Player of the Match for her 127 runs in the first innings.
The game lost a significant number of overs due to heavy rainfall during the first two days. This is a great advertisement for women’s test cricket. Indian players are not accustomed to playing the long format and kept the hosts on ropes throughout the game. If the series would have been longer then there would have been more storylines and scope for thrillers.
