Shreyanka Patil credits self-belief and team spirit after India’s win over Pakistan

India spinner Shreyanka Patil said the team's convincing victory over Pakistan provides momentum for tougher World Cup challenges ahead. She also opened up about overcoming injury setbacks, while Veda Krishnamurthy highlighted the importance of India's key batting partnerships.

Hyderabad: India’s Shreyanka Patil weighed in on bowling in the powerplay and the importance of securing a commanding win against Pakistan in the ICC Women’s World Cup on Sunday night, ahead of tougher challenges later.

“I’ve always enjoyed bowling in the powerplay, whether it’s for my state team or for India. It’s amazing to bowl under pressure because that’s what I love doing, and it’s something I’ve successfully done in the past. It was fun bowling to a left-hander. We had a couple of missed chances, but Deepti’s five-wicket haul made up for it all,” Shreyanka said on JioStar’s special tv show.

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“It’s a great win for us to start the tournament, and we did so with a convincing margin. We know that Australia and South Africa are top teams as well. It’s a World Cup, and you never know; anything can happen. So, you have to be at your best on the given day, and if you do everything right, you’ll end up on the winning side,” she said.

On her extended time on the sidelines due to injury, Shreyanka said:

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t depressed or that I didn’t think about giving up cricket. That’s how I felt initially during the injury phase. But there was a voice inside me saying, ‘No matter what, I love playing this sport. I’m here only because I love playing it.’”

“So, I couldn’t give up on something I love doing. I kept my head high, my dad kept talking to me, and my family supported me throughout. The atmosphere around me and the strong support system I had, I was always surrounded by great people. That kept me going. I love being back on the field now, and I won’t let that feeling go,” she said.

JioStar expert Veda Krishnamurthy hailed the partnership between India’s Captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Vice-Captain Smriti Mandhana.

“Both of them are experienced enough and were quick to understand the situation. What I liked about Smriti’s batting at the start was that she assessed the wicket in the first couple of overs and realised there was a bit of slowness in the surface. She waited on the back foot and played under her eyes as much as possible,” she said.

“When Harmanpreet came in, they delayed their onslaught until around the ninth over, when they started finding the boundary regularly. They understood the need to build a partnership at that stage, and once they had done that, you could see the sweep shots coming out. They also used their feet very effectively against both the spinners and the fast bowlers. That partnership was crucial because it set the base for Richa to come in later and score those quick runs,” Veda said.

On potential changes in the playing XI in the next game, Veda said: “I would still like to see Radha Yadav coming in for Bharti Fulmali. The reason is that Radha can be used in different batting positions, anywhere from No. 5 to No. 7. She is extraordinary in the field, always a plus-10 asset, and if required, she can contribute with the ball as well.

“When it comes to Renuka Thakur, I would probably look at bringing her in after the South Africa game because her numbers against them are not particularly strong. She has struggled against Laura Wolvaardt in the past. But, when you’re playing Australia and, if India qualify for the semi-finals, potentially England, West Indies or New Zealand, she has excellent numbers against those teams. So, I think she will be more useful for us in the later stages of the tournament. Radha was in my playing XI, but apart from that, I don’t see any changes,” Veda explained.