India all-rounder Deepti Sharma admitted that morale remains high within the camp as they look to bounce back from consecutive losses at the ICC Women’s World Cup, where they are set to face England in Indore on Sunday, October 19.
The tournament hosts made a superb start to their campaign with back-to-back victories over Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but defeats against South Africa and Australia have brought them back into a tight race for the semi-final spots. The upcoming clash against England looms
as a crucial fixture for India as they aim to strengthen their chances of reaching the knockout stages. Deepti emphasized that the team remains focused on the task ahead and maintains a positive mindset going into the match.
“I think even though we’ve lost two matches, our morale is still very good. Our first two matches went quite well, so we always go in with a positive mindset. As a team, we focus more on what we’ve done well. And as you mentioned about bowling, in every match, different players take on different roles. Bowlers are stepping up, whether it’s in the Powerplay or slog overs. Everyone is contributing,” Deepti was quoted as saying ahead of the England encounter.
The clash against England will be India’s first outing in seven days, and Deepti noted that the break from competitive action has allowed the players to refocus on the remaining matches. She added that the team used the time effectively to conduct targeted training sessions tailored to their upcoming opponents.
“The best part was getting this break. All our practice sessions were very specific, we practised against particular bowlers, both left-arm and off-spinners. We worked as much as possible, keeping in mind the conditions and the opponents. As a team and as a bowling unit, we focused on the areas we needed to improve,” said Deepti.
“Even in our last away series against England, we had a lot of positives and takeaways - and we won there too. It’s all about how you perform as a team in each match, and I believe we’re just one good game away from bouncing back stronger,” she added.
England have experience of playing India: Charlotte Edwards
A victory for England against India would see them become the third team to qualify for the semi-finals, and head coach Charlotte Edwards expressed her excitement ahead of the crucial encounter.
“We’ve been lucky that we’ve played a lot against India over the last 12 months and obviously in the English summer, so we’ve got lots of experience playing against India,” said Edwards.
“But this is, I guess, a one-off game now, isn’t it, in India in a World Cup. A massive game tomorrow (Sunday), which we’re all looking forward to, and we’ll be preparing like any other game. We know the threats of India, but equally, there’s some, we’ve got some wonderful players within our group, so I’m sure it’s set up for a fantastic game here tomorrow,” she added.
