India-W storm through to the Asian Games cricket final

The Indian women's cricket team stormed into the final of the ongoing Asian Games as they outclassed Bangladesh in a lopsided affair in the semis. It was a comprehensive eight-wicket win against Bangladesh as the Indian bowlers put in a staunch display to leave their opposition in utter disarray while the Indian batting unit saw through the paltry chase quite comfortably, avenging their earlier slump against Bangladesh in a series that sparked quite a few controversies later on.

Winning the toss, Bangladesh opted to bat first and the Indian bowlers clamped them down from both ends. Pooja Vastrakar removed the Bangladeshi openers in the very first over, returning them to the pavilion for a duck. Sobhana Mistry and the Bangladeshi captain, Nigar Sultana did come in tandem to try and precipitate a rebuild but Pooja Vastrakar’s relentless belligerence was too hot for Bangladesh to handle. She would soon return Sobhana back to the hut while Titas Sadhu sneaked through the defences of Shorna Akhter.

The misery for Bangladesh kept on compounding as Devika Vaidya removed their captain with an electric piece of work in the field and three balls later, RCB represent, Kanika Ahuja removed Fahima Khatun, crippling Bangladesh to 25/6. The remainder of the Bangladesh batting was barely any match for the Indian firepower as Vastrakar, Amanjot Kaur, Devika Vaidya and Rajeshwari Gayakwad steamrolled the opposition for a paltry 51. Pooja was the pick of the bowling lot as she finished with figures of 4/17 from her four overs.

The Indian chase did suffer a couple of hiccups as Bangladesh dismissed Smriti Mandhana (7) and Shafali Verma (17) cheaply, but Jemimah Rodrigues (20*) continued her fine form while Kanika Ahuja stayed unbeaten at the other end to help India cross the finish line without breaking a sweat. India will be facing the winner of the other semi-final that is being played between Sri Lanka and Pakistan.