Women’s T20 Challenge Velocity survive panic to earn win over Trailblazers

Danielle Wyatt plays a shot

Velocity opened their campaign in the Women’s T20 Challenge with a three-wicket win over Trailblazers in Jaipur, India yesterday.

The margin should have been much bigger than that, but they lost five wickets off seven balls, without adding a run. 

And all this happened when they needed just two, chasing a mere 113.

It was left to Sushree Pradhan, the uncapped 21-year-old from Odisha, to restore normalcy. 

She steered off-spinner Deepti Sharma through the third man for a couple, much to the relief of the Velocity dugout.  Earlier, Trailblazers Captain Smriti Mandhana had given the feeling that she was continuing from where she had left off from her last innings, lofting seamer Shikha for a four over mid-off and then driving the next ball gorgeously through the same area.
In her second over, Shikha had her revenge, though. She took arguably the most prized wicket in Women’s cricket at the moment, with a ball that moved away. 

Smriti tried to play it through the third-man area but ended up giving a catch behind the stumps to Sushma, who dived smartly to her left to take it.

Harleen Deol, now joined Suzie Bates, and the youngster, who has involved in a century partnership with Smriti in the last game, showed her talent yet again. 

She played the anchor well yet again, making 43, but none of the other batters got going.

Trailblazers: 112/6 in 20 overs (Harleen Deol 43, Ekta Bisht 2/13) 

Velocity: 113/7 in 18 overs (Danielle Wyatt 46, Deepti Sharma 4/14).  Agencies