Vadodara : Following the win against West Indies women in the second ODI of the series, India women skipper Harmanpreet Kaur heaped praise on the batters.
Right-hand batter Harleen Deo's strong knock and bowler's collective effort took women in blue to victory over the Caribbean by 115 runs in the second ODI of the three-match series at the Kotambi Stadium on Tuesday.
"We did what we were expecting. The way our openers gave us the start, after that Harleen's batting and Jemi was also there to support the team. Really happy with the way we batted. Definitely. Even in the second innings, the way Hayley was batting, it indicated this pitch was better for batters. We had a decent total on the board and the way our bowlers were bowling, we had that trust on them that they can, at any point, take a wicket and turn the tables.
Our bowlers are doing well. In between, we leaked a few runs but then Deepti came back, kept the runs down and then Titas came back (and picked up a wicket from the other end)," Kaur said in the post-match presentation.
Chasing 359, West Indies skipper Hayley Matthews led from the front for the visitors, smashing a valiant 106 off 109 to stabilise the chase on one end, but the Indian bowlers, led by Priya Mishra proved too strong for the visitors.
Opting to bat, the top-order delivered the goods for India, with Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal taking India off to a flying start, forging yet another 110-run opening wicket stand, before Mandhana fell on 53.
Rawal, playing in just her second ODI, shone with a blistering 86-ball 76 as well that pushed India towards a commanding total.
Deol brought out her best in the blue jersey, notching up 115 off just 103 deliveries, and smashing 16 fours along the way. The 26-year-old, alongside Jemimah Rodrigues, added an attacking 116 off 70 balls for the fourth wicket.
Rodrigues helped herself to a swash-buckling 52 off 36, as India closed out their innings at 358/5 - their joint-highest score in women's ODIs.
In return, the West Indies lost a flurry of wickets at the top, with only skipper Matthews holding guard to register her seventh ODI century against the Indian bowlers.
Shemaine Campbelle (38), Zaida James (25) and Afy Fletcher (22) showed resistance later on but India, led by Priya Mishra's three-wicket haul, overcame the visitors by 115 runs. Pratika Rawal (2-37), Deepti Sharma (2-40) and Titas Sadhu (2-42) grabbed two wickets apiece to bundle out the visitors for 243 in 46.2 overs.