What a cracker of a contest it was. Till the very last ball, nobody could predict the result. Both the teams did not let loose and in the end, it turned out to be a nail-biting finish. It was a do or die game for the defending champions Supernovas and the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side ensured that they remained in the hunt.
Match Summary
Winning the toss and electing to bat first, Supernovas piled up a competitive 146-6 in 20 overs, riding on Chamari Atapaththu’s (67) brilliant half-century. The opening pair of Priya Punia (30) and Atapaththu stitched a solid partnership of 89 in 12 overs. Skipper Kaur promoted herself up the order and scored a quick 29-ball 31 to keep the momentum going. The Supernovas’ top order ensured that they put up a respectable score on board. With the ball for the Trailblazers, Jhulan Goswami, Salma Khatun, and Harleen Deol picked up a wicket apiece.
Chasing an above par target of 147, the Trailblazers got off to a good start, courtesy, Deandra Dottin (27) and Smriti Mandhana (33). The duo put together 44 runs in 6.3 overs to lay a solid foundation for the batters to follow. Southpaw Deepti Sharma top-scored with 44 and found an able ally in Harleen Deol (27). In the end, the Smriti Mandhana-led side fell short by a minuscule two runs as they finished at 144-5 in 20 overs. Radha Yadav and Shakira Selman were the pick of the bowlers for Supernovas as they accounted for two wickets each.
WHATT A GAMEE!!
Supernovas are in the final. Excellent over under immense pressure by Radha Yadav.#womenst20challenge pic.twitter.com/a6iTOe0PIN
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) November 7, 2020
The do or die encounter for the Supernovas was nothing less than a humdinger. Trailblazers and the defending champions locked horns in a tough battle and finally the women who held their nerves had the last laugh. The game was a perfect epitome of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat. At one point, the Trailblazers were cruising when Deepti Sharma and Harleen Deol were firing on all cylinders. But the Supernovas put up a good show to tame the Trailblazers.
On Monday, the two sides will face off against each other in the finals. Let’s see if the Supernovas can make it three in three or we have new champions in the Women’s T20 Challenge.
The Finals Date is confirmed – It’s #Trailblazers vs #Supernovas on 9th Nov. #WomensT20Challenge pic.twitter.com/VLF5jAklNx
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) November 7, 2020
Brief Scores:
Supernovas 146-6 in 20 overs (C Athapaththu 67, H Kaur 31; J Goswami 1-17) beat Trailblazers 144-5 in 20 overs (D Sharma 43, S Mandhana 33; R Yadav 2-30, S Selman 2-31) by 2 runs
Quotes from the players
Chamari Athapaththu | Player of the Match: I played my normal game. I have to score runs as I am a senior player in this team. I know my responsibility and role in the team. I try and share my knowledge with the youngsters. I want to improve the game all around the world and share whatever I know with the Indian girls and everyone. This was a must-win game for us and I was a little bit worried in the last 3-4 overs. Finally, we won and that’s good. We are a champion side and know how to win a game.
Harmanpreet Kaur | Supernovas captain: It was very close. Hats off to our bowlers, they soaked in the pressure and bowled to their fields. Every game you play, you want to win. With the start we got, we were looking at least 160 but we knew that the ball was turning and our spinners will come into play. Both left-handers were batting and that’s why we went for the off-spinner (on why Poonam Yadav didn’t bowl). Today there was not much dew. We will try our best and with this win the confidence is high
Radha Yadav: Wanted to keep it simple and was focusing to execute the plans. Just wanted to bowl according to the field and that’s the plan. She (Poonam Yadav) is fit and not sure about the move to hold her back. I enjoy these situations and dream of playing in such situations and glad that I was able to help my team win.
Smriti Mandhana: The girls took us really close. Would have loved to get past the line but it was a brilliant effort from Deepti and Harleen. There was quite a bit of dew around. We were looking to win the match and didn’t think about any other scenario, which team to play in the final etc. Hopefully we will play well against them in the final. A good wake up call for the bowlers and the fielding unit after the first match. Hopefully we will come back stronger on Monday.
Players’ quotes are sourced from Cricbuzz
I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.