India Women: How did the debutants fare against England?
There were promising signs for India Women in their hard-fought draw against England women in the recently concluded one-off Test at Bristol. The side's first Test in seven years saw some scintillating performances from their debutants.
While Shafali Verma was the standout performer for the Mithali Raj-led side, there were also other noteworthy contributions that made the team well on its way to becoming a formidable Test side.
As we await the start of the limited-overs challenge, let's take a quick look at how the debutants fared.
Shafali Verma's India women's debut was a run-filled one
With scores of 96 and 63 in the innings, Verma cemented herself as one for the future. Her unfazed approach and nifty footwork were impressive and the teen showed no signs of discomfort against a stern English bowling side.
The 159 runs across two innings make her third on the list of most runs by a player in a women's Test debut after Michelle Gozko and Lesley Cooke.
Deepti Sharma's all-round performance
Her unbeaten 29 and 54 in both innings along with a 3/65 makes Sharma another player to have had a great outing in her Test debut. Sharma's solid technique and her guile with the ball makes her a valuable asset capable of slotting in at any order in the lineup.
Taniya Bhatia's unbeaten 44 helps India salvage a draw
The wicketkeeper bat's 88-ball-44 was instrumental as India eked out a draw against a tough England bowling unit. After being dismissed for a duck in the first innings, Bhatia stitched an unbeaten 104-run stand with Sneh Rana (80*) as India women pulled off a stellar draw.
Sneh Rana's counter-attacking approach
Reeling at 175 for 5, Rana took charge and swatted her way to an unbeaten 80 studded with 13 fours. She found an able ally in Taniya Bhatia (44*) as the duo withstood the English bowling attack and saved the match for India. Rana's 4/131 in the first innings also makes her the handy all-rounder India women need across formats.
Pooja Vastrakar's pace augurs well for India women
The right-arm medium pacer may have just one wicket to show for in her maiden Test outing, but her disciplined lengths make her part of the future Indian pace battery when veterans Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey hang up their boots.