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So, with this win, India Women triumph over Bangladesh Women for the second straight T20I series in Bangladesh in two years. There is a bit of time for the next game now. It's time for both sides to reflect, refresh and come back stronger. The action resumes on the 6th of May with the 4th game. So, do join us for that one to see if the hosts can make a comeback or whether the visitors remain unbeaten. For now, this is the pair of Pratyush and Bidipto taking your leave. Keep following Sportskeeda!
Harmanpreet Kaur (India Women captain): (On the batting getting tested a bit towards the end) I thought the wicket became a little more sticky after the first 10-12 overs when we batted, so, we weren't able to get runs quickly enough. So, instead of playing risky shots, we wanted to do it safely, considering the start that we got. (On her team's bowlers) The bowlers are bowling really well. They have been working really hard, so, it's good to see them succeed. (On Deepti Sharma's consistency with the ball) Deepti is experienced today. So, whenever we are in a spot of bother, she steps up and does the work for us. (On whether she has plans of giving other players a go in the next two matches) We have three days to go, so, we'll assess everything and then select the team. But yes, we are trying to give the others chances too. (On this support staff) The coaching staff has worked a lot with us and helped us improve in all three departments. Just hope that the good work continues!
Shafali Verma (Player of the Match, 51 off 38 balls): (First thoughts on her batting today) I think the ball came nicely on to my bat today, so I kept going with my shots. I got out when I wasn't expecting myself to, but, I think the damage was done by then. (On scoring 2000 T20I runs with Smriti Mandhana as openers) I hope both Smriti and I score many more runs together at the top of the order. (On her form and takeaway from the WPL) The ball was coming on to the bat quite well in the WPL, so, that gave me a lot of confidence coming into this series. (Her favourite shot) My favourite shot is the over over cover. (On whether this outing in Bangladesh serves her well for the upcoming challenges here) Indeed, this serves as a good preparation for the T20 World Cup coming up in these conditions itself!
Nigar Sultana (Bangladesh captain): We did well in the powerplay and then lost back-to-back wickets and as a result couldn't finish well in the end. [Batting] See, the team has been doing this for the last six months. We're having a tough time right now. So, we have to keep calm and get to work. She's (Dilara Akter) very energetic with her batting and seems like she's enjoying herself in the middle. As a young player, there is plenty to improve on but I'm happy with how she's batted. Our bowlers have been doing well, but our batters are struggling. The way we bowled in the powerplay could be concerning but the way the spinners came back strongly is a very good thing for us. [Catch by Ritu Moni] We tried everything, so we tried something different. So, I introduced Ritu and it worked out well.
Smriti Mandhana: It's an important win for us. Winning 3-0 is always good, especially ahead of a big tournament. Shafali took on the bowlers well so it was easy for me to rotate strike. [Thoughts on completing 2000 runs as an opening pair] We don't come to the game watching stats or anything. Ever since Shafali has come into the team, it's been great batting with her. Opening partnerships are crucial in T20 cricket and I'm glad we have scored 2000 runs as a pair. We've developed a great understanding, especially in the last couple of years. Depending on whose days it is, we try to capitalize on it as a pair.
India Women win by 7 wickets with 9 balls to spare!
The match might have got over in the 19th over, but the first-wicket partnership of 91 runs in 12 overs sealed the deal much earlier for India!
Shafali Verma's blitzkrieg did all the damage up front. She smashed her way to 51 off only 38 balls, with 8 fours in it! Smriti Mandhana batted well, scoring 47 runs herself with a strike rate of 111.90, but was unlucky to get out before getting to her milestone of fifty runs.
The pair have now put together over 2000 T20I runs together! But the moment for Bangladesh in this innings has to be the return catch of Ritu Moni to dismiss Shafali. She plucked her right hand out in her follow through and got hold of a stunning catch! It was firmly struck too, but Ritu Moni made it look ridiculously easy.
That started a bit of a slowdown in the scoring. Smriti Mandhana and Dayalan Hemalatha were out as well, leaving skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh to finish the job.
After taking some more time than expected, India were able to register a comfortable victory in the end and seal yet another series win! Bangladesh have a lot of improvements to make come the next game to challenge the visitors.
The series goes to India Women with 2 matches still to play!
18.3 Nahida Akter to Richa Ghosh, FOUR! INDIA TAKES AN UNASSAILABLE 3-0 LEAD IN THIS SERIES! It was on the good length outside off. Richa waits on it before slashing it through backward point to seal the deal for her side. India win by 7 wickets and seal this five-match T20I series.
18.2 Nahida Akter to Richa Ghosh, into the pitch outside the off-stump. Richa slashes and misses, no run