‘Need smart cricket under pressure’ – India Women coach calls for skill improvement

India needed just three runs in the final over, with five wickets in hand. However, Kate Cross gave away just one run and picked up two wickets to leave India ruing another failure from the middle order.

Inexperience played a big part. A frustrated Mithali Raj was stuck at the non-strikers’ end, with her partners unable to rotate strike. Raman, however, decided to look at the positives.

“They have been playing good cricket, but in T20 what you need is smart cricket under pressure,” he said. “[It’s a] young side, will learn along the way. Even though the scoreline says 3-0, [and that we were] not playing as well as we could, it was not a total washout in terms of the way we lost it. That's heartening.

“First, they need to work a lot on their skills. Once the development in terms of skills happens, then all other things come into play, because tactically, everybody is aware of what needs to be done. But tactics cannot be executed unless the technical base is good enough.”

Raman also felt that it was a case of young players needing to learn from such experiences. “It's just that the newcomers getting a little bit of experience to know what to do under a little bit of pressure and challenge,” said Raman. “Once that improves, I think it will be a very good situation for us in the future. And as you see, the only way is up.

“I'm not totally either sulking or mourning about it. From here on, the only way is up. That's the way I'd look at it.”

As for Raj, her role has changed since the ICC Women’s World T20 2018 in November, when she was infamously dropped for the crunch semi-final clash against England. Now, Raj is seen as someone providing much-needed experience to a shaky middle order.

"We had a chat about what is she comfortable doing and what suits the side as well,” said Raman. “Since Harman [Harmanpreet Kaur] was not here, we needed someone with experience in the middle order. That's the reason she stuck to her slot at four.

“Quite obviously, she also needs to be backed up by others. Unfortunately, that kind of support didn't come. It's all a case of what a specific player can bring to the table and how it suits the team's needs. That's how things will happen.”