IND vs WI: Harlin Deol’s maiden century, Pratika Rawal impressive, India win series with big win | Cricket News

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The last ODI century by an Indian woman batsman not named Smriti Mandhana or Harmanpreet Kaur was Poonam Raut in March 2021. That wait finally came to an end in Vadodara on Tuesday when Harlin Deol scored his maiden international century in the second ODI against the West Indies. Her 115 and fifties by three other Indians – Smriti Mandhana, Pratika Rawal and Jemimah Rodrigues – took the hosts to 358/5, their joint-highest total in the format, enough for a 115-run victory that sealed the series. With a game to go.

In reply to India’s mammoth total, Hayley Mathews showed his class with his 7th ODI century, but unlike Deol’s knock, which was surrounded by other important batting efforts, the West Indies captain fought a lone battle as they were bowled out for 243 in the 47th over. above.

Deol’s classical strokemaking has always stood out in a stop-start international career but his strike rate has been an issue – 68.88 in ODIs a ton ago and 84.79 in T20Is are not standout numbers in the modern game. Had he taken the catch while playing for 19 off 28 balls, the innings would have ended at a strike rate of 65.5. But Diandra Dottin missed a very simple chance at square leg and Deol took advantage of it.

And so in her 14th ODI innings, Deol converted a slow start into her fastest and most impressive innings. Once in her sights, the strokes started coming, and she pushed her strike rate higher, completing a career-best 115 off 103 balls with 16 fours at a strike rate of 111.65 – the first time she had completed a strike rate of 111.65. Better innings than runs in a ball in this format. Her first 50 came off 62 balls and from there she scored 65 off the next 41 balls.

Once she reached three digits, the helmet came off, and she raised her hand with a sense of relief. In the background, Jemimah Rodrigues was beaming for her team. After suffering a knee injury at the start of this year’s Women’s Premier League, it has been a rocky road for her.

“So happy for Harry, I was with him after the ACL surgery in the rehab phase, and to see him not walk away with his bat and helmet after the century, I was also emotional,” Rodrigues. I mean later.

“It’s a proud moment, I’ve been waiting for it for a long time,” said Deol, the player of the match. β€œThe last couple of innings, when I came in to bat and wanted to go with the flow, it was time to get my eyes on it. I knew the more time I spent in the middle, the more shots I would be able to play. When I was in rehab, I was only thinking about making a century. The ultimate goal was for my team to win. And today was actually the day I dreamed of.

Pratika made a mark

Harleen was able to take her time without too much scoreboard pressure which led to an excellent opening partnership. For the second time in a row, Mandhana and Rawal put on a 110-run stand for the first wicket, but it was not much different from the first ODI as the newcomer matched the left-hander at almost every turn.

Twice a day Rawal turned his head in despair. For the first time, it was a misunderstanding with Mandhana that led to the run out of the red-hot Indian opener – once again looking like a million bucks the only way he could get out. For the second time, Rawal himself was dismissed softly after looking well set for a maiden international century. He fell when a short ball that bounced a little higher than he expected picked up the fielder at midwicket.

Apart from those two moments, however, India’s new debutant played an impressive knock of 76 runs down the ground with 10 fours and a huge six off 86 balls. It was a stark contrast to how his first innings had gone 48 hours earlier, when he could have been dismissed three or four times in the first 20 odd balls.

“I couldn’t hold on,” she later said of her debut game, but those 40 runs and the time in between meant Rawal was more fluent in her second outing. She also made it a memorable day by taking the wicket of Centurion Mathews.

Brief scores: India 358/5 in 50 overs (Deol 115, Rawal 76; Fletcher 1/38) beat West Indies for 243 in 46.2 overs (Matthews 106, Campbell 38; Priya Mishra 3/49)

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