Senior Women's One-Day League: Top 5 performances so far
One of the most prominent competitions for Indian women cricketers in the domestic circuit -- Senior Women's One-day league is over three weeks old now. And by all means, this time, it has surpassed all the hype woven around it.
The event has got bigger and better in many terms. Introduction of new teams, more competition, best facilities (except video-recording of matches in Mulapadu), and the transparent process for the selection into the national side are few of them.
As a result, players look more determined than ever to represent the country. From hustling through the daily routine, following a strict regime, working hard on their fitness, and training rigorously in the nets, players are willing to give more than 100%.
Despite going through such a demanding period, for a performer, it all boils down to the game day. And there is no certainty that it'll always yield better results. It could go either way. It could be a wonderful day on the field or could be way worse. Players got to be ready to accept it.
Some of the best possible performances of the group stage are mentioned below. Let's have a look at them.
#5 Punam Raut, 136* (Railways vs Saurashtra)
The Mumbai born right-hand batswoman, Punam Raut is the most consistent and reliable opener for Railways. At the top of the batting order, she is just as good as anybody in the world. Moreover, playing long innings is her specialty, and she is living up to the tag very well.
About the performance
Having scored a decent amount of runs in the season so far, Punam was not shy of bagging more runs and trending at the top of the list of highest scorers of the league. She is hungry yet determined.
After beautifully neglecting the opening bowling spell of Saurashtra, Punam Raut with her other opening partner, Shweta paced the Railways' innings brilliantly.
Despite losing wickets from one end in regular intervals, Punam was slowly but steadily driving Railways' total to a hefty one. Raut shared some decent partnerships with her teammates, but it was she, who held on to one end and kept teasing the bowlers.
On-drive, off-drive, straight-drive or square cut, she played them all elegantly throughout and proudly raised her bat after scoring the century -- her second of the season.
Punam Raut has collected 338 runs off 7 innings in the tournament as of now. But with a couple more games to go, she will definitely love to plunder as many runs as she can.