Deepti’s unbeaten 106, Harmanpreet’s 126 power India’s innings

Vadodara:  Harmanpreet Kaur struck a high-quality 126 off 121 balls, while Deepti Sharma scored a brisk 106 not out to power India to 328 for six in the second women’s ODI against Zimbabwe here on Sunday.

Harmanpreet delighted the sizeable crowd with her sublime strokeplay on the off-side. Her cover drives and cut shots were a treat to watch.

The former India captain shared a 153-run partnership with all-rounder Deepti, whose unbeaten knock came off 86 balls, as the two veterans helped India post a formidable total.

India and Zimbabwe are playing a bilateral series for the first time, providing the visitors with an opportunity to learn from a top side.

India did not have the best of starts, as Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma fell cheaply. Newly appointed captain Mandhana mistimed a pull shot in the first over before Shafali was caught at midwicket, giving Nomvelo Sibanda her second wicket.

Pratika Rawal (61 off 67 balls) and Harmanpreet then forged a 124-run partnership to steady the innings. Rawal was caught at deep midwicket in the 23rd over, while Tejal Hasabnis failed to execute a slog sweep.

Harmanpreet then took charge with a perfectly paced knock. She also had luck on her side, having been dropped three times. It was her eighth ODI century, and she appeared to be enjoying her role without the additional responsibility of captaining the side.

India, however, could not finish as strongly as they would have liked. Designated finisher Richa Ghosh did not last long, slowing the scoring towards the end.

Deepti reached her second ODI century with a four towards square leg in the final over of the innings. She struck 15 boundaries overall.

Given their struggles with the bat on the tour, Zimbabwe will need a significant improvement to get close to India’s total.