During Tea on the first day of the solitary Test in the multi-format series between India and Australia Women at Wankhede Stadium, Pooja Vastrakar continued to trouble the Australian lineup, restricting them to 180/8 in 60 overs in their first innings.
Consistently landing the ball around the good length spot, Vastrakar utilized the initial juice in the pitch to unsettle the Australian batters. Having previously secured figures of 3/23 in the second innings against England, her ability to move the ball both ways caused trouble for the opposition.
Vastrakar’s impactful spell saw her claiming the wickets of Beth Mooney (40) and Ellyse Perry (4) in the first session. She further added to her tally, dismissing Annabel Sutherland (16) and Ashleigh Gardner (11) before Tea, concluding the session with figures of 4/51 in 14 overs.
Sneh Rana contributed with her second wicket, inducing an edge off Alana King, confirmed through Ultra Edge upon India’s successful DRS appeal.
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Deepti Sharma, the off-spinner, delivered a crucial blow by dismissing Alyssa Healy, the Australian skipper, who managed 38 runs off 75 balls before being castled by a low delivery.
At the Tea break, Jess Jonassen (batting 6) and Kim Garth (batting 8) were striving to add valuable runs to bolster the Australian score for their bowlers.
Continuing from 103/4 at Lunch, the partnership between Healy and Sutherland added 40 runs for the fifth wicket, facing challenges from the Indian spinners who effectively restricted their scoring.
Australia faced difficulty with the spinning ball occasionally keeping low, impacting their progress. Healy, appearing in control, fell victim to a low-bouncing delivery while attempting a sweep shot, leading to her dismissal.
Vastrakar’s return to the attack proved crucial as she swiftly claimed the wickets of Sutherland and Gardner in successive overs, causing disruptions in Australia’s batting lineup.
Although India displayed decent fielding, a couple of dropped chances by Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, and keeper Yastika Bhatia prevented the Australians from losing more wickets in this session.
