India-W make light work of Japan-W to clinch Asian Games semifinal ticket
The Indian womenโs cricket team got off to a fine start in their Asian Games campaign as they crushed Japan in the tournament opener to book a ticket to the semi-finals. A dominant performance in all the departments saw the Women in Blue make quick work of their counterparts as they registered an eight-wicket win.
Japan started on a decent note, riding high on the back of Haruna Iwasaki (10) and Ayaka Kato-Stafford (25). The opening duo put together 24 runs for Japan but were soon shown the exit once Sree Charani raged in. Charani got the better of Iwasaki and pried open the floodgates.
The Indian bowlers needed no further invitation to work their magic. Charani doubled down on the charge as she removed the Japanese captain, Mai Yanagida for a golden duck. Erika Oda (5) was the next to walk back as Deepti Sharma opened her account as well while Shafali Verma was able to conjure the crucial scalp of Kato-Stafford.
Japan lost all their 10 wickets within a span of 33 runs as the Indian spinners ran absolute riot. Sree Charani claimed four wickets for herself while Shafali Verma registered a brace to her name. Shreyanka Patil made a return to competitive cricket from her injury and chronicled an excellent spell with returns of 3.5-0-8-1 while Deepti Sharma claimed a wicket too.
Gunalan Kamalini (0) and Bharti Fulmali (6) couldnโt really get going as India lost a couple of early wickets. However, Shafali Verma smashed 40 off just 15 balls to dispel any unprecedented fears while Richa Ghosh stayed unbeaten for 12 off six, smashing a couple of fours to take India across the finish line.
