World Cup, India v Pakistan as it happened: Late batting recovery, good bowling gives India the win

Press conference snippets:

The heroes for India with the bat. Sneh Rana refers to Pooja Vastrakar and herself as “good strike rotators”. Can’t put it better. The plan was to run hard, go till 45 overs and then go big. Target in mind 180-200 when Pooja came in. Both players once spoke highly about the importance of speaking to the team psychologist and how it helped. Pooja Vastrakar also says she’s feeling fine now (leg injury). The decision to not field was to make sure she didn’t risk it.

Here’s the match report:

Player of the match, Pooja Vastrakar: Happy for my first Player of the Match, that too in a World Cup game, I love batting under the pressure.

WICKET! 42.6: Diana Baig 24(35) ct Harmanpreet Kaur b Meghna Singh Caught at long on, that’s that. Pakistan 137/10

Pakistan 137/9 after 42 overs: Jhulan Goswami: 10-1-26-2. India’s two senior bowlers stepped up nicely. Goswami’s second spell was lovely. The record will have to wait but that applause from Mithali at the end said it all.

This is a nice late cameo by Diana Baig.

Pakistan 132/9 after 41 overs: Sneh Rana with a 5-run over and Jhulan will get another chance.

Pakistan 127/9 after 40 overs: No record-levelling wicket in that over for JG. She might get one chance.

Jhulan one short of a milestone wicket, gets the chance here

Pakistan 122/9 after 39 overs: 10-0-31-4 for Gayakwad! Terrific bowling, a couple of half chances to make it a 5-for in the last over. Sneh Rana from the other end bowls her 8th.

WICKET! Over 36.5: Nashra Sundhu 0(5) ct Richa Ghosh b Sneh Rana Well, is that another wicket Pakistan could have avoided with DRS? Given out caught by keeper with no reviews left. Oh great decision, inside edge for sure. Terrific diving catch at around the short-leg region by the keeper. Been a great day for her behind the stumps. Pakistan 114/9

WICKET! Over 35.5: Sidra Nawaz 12(19) lbw Rajeshwari Gayakwad DRS might have helped Sidra there actually but they have no reviews left. Attempted sweep, missed. But could have missing off stump. Pakistan 113/8

Pakistan 109/7 after 35 overs: Been a little while since two Indian spinners of this squad bowled a spell of this quality in tandem. The drift, turn, odd-one-going-straight have all been so good to watch. Sneh getting the ball to turn and bounce in that over.

Pakistan 104/7 after 34 overs: Jhulan Goswami loves giving a good hug. Must be nice to be her teammate.

WICKET! Over 33.1: Fatima Sana 17(35) lbw Rajeshwari Gayakwad After getting beaten so many times due to flight and turn, Fatima is out LBW by one that went through with the angle. HAve we said RG has been delightful? Feel like we have. She has been. Pakistan 98/7

Pakistan 96/6 after 32 overs: Rajeshwari Gayakwad is just beating the outside edge for fun at the moment. Another delightful over.

WICKET! Over 29.6: Aliya Riaz 11(23) st Richa Ghosh b Rajeshwari Gayakwad Fatima somehow survived that over where she couldn’t read Gayakwad at all but off the final ball, Aliya falls. Kept beating the outside edge, brought one back with an arm that Fatima surived and then great glovework from Richa. Pakistan 87/6

Note to self: Rewatch the 30th over of Pakistan’s innings that was bowled by Rajeshwari Gayakwad if possible. What a delightful over of left-arm spin bowling!

Pakistan 85/5 after 28 overs: No, a break it would seem for Jhulan. Well earned too, of course. 8-1-16-2. What a bowler, eh? Deepti Sharma and Rajeshwari Gayakwad bowling in tandem now.

Pakistan 79/5 after 26 overs: Another tidy over from Jhulan. Will Mithali be tempted to bowl her out here?

STAT ALERT: Jhulan Goswami now 2nd on this list, two away from the record.

WICKET! Over 23.1: Nida Dar 4(10) ct Richa Ghosh b Jhulan Goswami Nida Dar does try to taken on JG but no luck. Another outside edge, another catch for Richa, another trademark celebration. Pakistan 70/5

Pakistan 70/4 after 23 overs: A snippet comes up saying Nida Dar would picks Jhulan Goswami as the bowler she’d like to hit for a six. Anjum encourages Dar to do it from the commentary box, while Sana urges her to be patient. Good stuff. Meanwhile, if any pair can make a match out of this it is Nida-Aliya.

WICKET! Over 21.2: Sidra Ameen 30(64) ct Richa Ghosh b Jhulan Goswami When you need a breakthrough, who you gonna call? Goswami. Nice shape away from a length, no feet movement from Sidra (as we saw in the powerplay). Easy catch for Richa this time. Pakistan 67/4

Pakistan 65/3 after 20 overs: Nida Dar in the middle and with Sidra, this is a huge partnership. If they can keep the scoreboard ticking, there is still Aliya to come who can go big next. But RRR is 6 at the moment.

WICKET! Over 18.2: Omaima Sohail 5(4) ct Deepti Sharma b Sneh Rana India’s best spinner in the fifth ODI against NZ is at it early! Lovely drift in that delivery, too late to cut and Deepti takes a sharp catch at first slip Pakistan 58/3

WICKET! 17.4: Bismah Maroof 15(25) ct Richa Ghosh b Deepti Sharma SUPERB CATCH! These are hard ones, make no mistake. Terrific from Richa Ghosh, especially given it’s a feather inside edge. Bismah used up the review as well there. Pakistan 53/2

Pakistan 47/1 after 17 overs, Required rate is EXACT 6.00 RPO now. Wickets (and even control) from spinners has been a recent area of concern for India but Rajeshwari Gayakwad (who was the pick in the SA warmup match) has started really well here. Bowling with great rhythm.

DRINKS: Pakistan 45/1 after 16 overs And that’s Deepti finding the loop and length. Good over from her, much better control. Time for a break, with Pakistan needing 200 from 34 overs.

Pakistan 43/1 after 15 overs: Gayakwad has kept things tight from her end so far.

Pakistan 40/1 after 14 overs: Good little phase for Pakistan this. Another boundary for Sidra and Pakistan, Deepti hasn’t started well here.

Pakistan 34/1 after 12 overs: Correction.

Pakistan 34/1 after 12 overs: Deepti comes on Bismah helps herself to a four, cutting one past point. Nice shot, India now to have work with right-left.

WICKET! Over 10.6: Javeria Khan 11(28) ct Jhulan Goswami b Rajeshwari Gayakwad Well, that’s the sound of pressure paying off. The pacers did their bit in the first 10, Gayakwad comes on and a big shot is attempted. Wouldn’t have cleared Jhulan even if there was more elevation. Pakistan 28/1

Pakistan 26/0 after 10 overs: a four for Javeria but nearly another run out in that over because the bat wasn’t grounded properly. If Pakistan’s plan to preserve wickets in the powerplay, they have done that. Some momentum in the last couple overs. India didn’t do much better in this phase, mind you.

Pakistan 17/0 after 9 overs: A rare miscalculation of length from Jhulan. Drops it too short, Ameen with another four. (Suzie Bates and Co, not long back, pounced on anything that was short)

Pakistan 12/0 after 8 overs: A boundary! That must feel like such a relief for the moment. Momentum into the shot, Ameen with a four past cover off Meghna.

Pakistan 8/0 after 7 overs: Another tight over by Jhulan. The footwork is the issue for the openers here. They are unable to find any momentum into the shots, as they are a bit stationary. Preserving wickets is one thing but Pakistan have simply not got going.

Pakistan 6/0 after 6 overs (Correction): Another maiden over for *Meghna (thanks to sharp fielding at mid-off by the captain off the last ball). 1 run in the last 4 overs!

Pakistan 6/0 after 6 overs: Another maiden over for Jhulan (thanks to sharp fielding at mid-off by the captain off the last ball). 1 run in the last 4 overs!

Pakistan 6/0 after 5 overs: Oh nearly, a third maiden over! A single off the last ball by Ameen.

Pakistan 5/0 after 4 overs (score corrected): Another maiden over, this one by Meghna.

Commentary update: Renuka Singh is on the field as Pooja Vastrakar is receiving treatment for a strained ligament in the bottom of her left leg.

Pakistan 5/0 after 3 overs: And that’s more like Jhulan. A maiden over. And a big appeal for LBW, replays now show missing the wicket. Good cricket all around.

Pakistan 5/0 after 2 overs: Javeria Khan and Sidra Ameen are the openers for Pakistan. Nice first over from Meghna, the away shape there to see.

Meghna from the other end, watch out for the away movement Pakistan. Renuka meanwhile is on the field, no Pooja yet.

Pakistan 4/0 afte 1 over: A bit unlike Jhulan that over, starts off with one short and wide and then drifts one down the leg side. She is human after all. Otherwise tidy in her channel.

It’s time. Jhulan to start things off.

Innings break: A few times during the broadcast, former captain Sana Mir (on commentary) has reminded that this Pakistan batting lineup is more composed, experienced now than they have been in the years past. Nida Dar too reiterated that in the break. Good pitch, great outfield. Pakistan still in this, mind you. India have overall fallen short of the 250-260 they would have wanted at the start of the day.

End of 50 overs, India 244/7: A four to finish the India innings.

Sneh Rana* : 53 (48 balls)

Pooja Vastrakar: 67 (59 balls)

From dire straits, India have staged a remarkable late recovery. Will this be enough?

48.2: A four for Sneh Rana 

48.4: A four for Pooja Vastrakar 

48.5: A four for Pooja Vastrakar 

 What a time to lose broadcast. 

India 221/6 after 48 overs: Broadcast gone everywhere it would seem. Score updates from ICC only.

India 215/6 after 47 overs: Pooja Vastrakar continues to struggle a bit with her foot though. Not good signs.

HALF CENTURY! Pooja Vastrakar with a innings to be proud of. Came in when India were in a lot of trouble but has played a superb innings. 51 off 48 balls. And now the 100-run partnership comes up too. Applause from the dressing room, dugout.

India 192/6 after 44 overs: The running between the wickets was so good, but just a bit of issue there. Vastrakar runs two off the last ball though so maybe adrenaline is doing its thing now.

India 188/6 after 43 overs: Pooka Vastrakar might just be having some issues with her foot.

This stat is exactly the reason for our earlier comment about context. Yes, India fell back into old issues but to say they have not addressed it is not right either.

India 182/6 after 42 overs: Oh dear, another near brain-fade. Vastarkar could have paid the price for not grounding the bat properly. But that’s another good over for India. Sneh with a four off Fatima.

The partnership has crossed 50 too.

India 170/6 after 41 overs: Sneh Rana begins the last 10 with a nice late cut for four off Baig. Important part of this partnership, as much as Pooja Vastrakar’s boundaries.

India 160/6 after 40 overs: India were in huge trouble. They needed some impetus to the innings. Pakistan were in complete control. Enter Pooja Vastrakar. 33 off 29 now and India have made a brief recovery. Another boundary through the offside in that over, cutting Anam.

India 148/6 after 39 overs: Now Vastrakar takes on Baig, hitting one past mid off for four. Another good over for the Indians.

Frustrating as that collapse was, would just like to point out that India had identified these problem areas recently and had worked towards rectifying. Just didn’t show today but not like they’ve been entirely stubborn about it.

India 141/6 after 38 overs: Anam comes on, another short ball to Vastrakar and it is cut away again for four. Funny how a little counterattack can change things for a batting side.

India 134/6 after 37 overs: Pooja Vastarkar had said recently that she has been working hard on her batting especially in the last 10 overs. Great time to show that here. Decent over there as India pick up 5 from Baig’s over.

Yastika Bhatia would be looking on from the dressing room hoping she was playing

India 129/6 after 36 overs: Sneh Rana with a nice push through the offside for three, good fielding effort. Pakistan, after what feels like an eternity, are having to face some pressure from the batters now.

India 123/6 after 35 overs: HUZZAH! A Boundary. And then two. Pooja Vastrakar can do this, she is a much improved batter in recent times. India need that big time here. Dar dropped a couple short.

Sums up India’s troubles...

WICKET! Over 33.1: Mithali Raj 9(36) ct Diana Baig b Nashra Sundhu Oh dear (we seem to have said a bit today). This innings is going to get social media talking. Mithali, perhaps feeling the pressure of the scoring rate, goes for a big lofted shot but mistimes it off the leading edge. Easy catch at point. India 114/6

India 114/5 after 33 overs: Maiden over from Nida Dar. This stat is interesting. She has been put back into a more cautious mode unlike recent times because of a collapse.

India 114/5 after 32 overs: Sneh Rana in the middle with Mithali Raj. Two teammates in the domestic level too. Sneh has been short of runs though. All eyes on Mithali.

India 112/5 after 31 overs: Mithali Raj must be feeling like this familiar in not a good way. Indian batting in recent times had done well to arrest collapses and build partnerships. This is a throwback of the wrong kind.

WICKET! Over 30.5: Richa Ghosh 1(5) b Nida Dar Oh dear. Richa cannot get the sweep right and she is bowled. It’s a procession at the moment and India have lost the wicket of Richa Ghosh as well who could have been crucial here. Time for a drinks break and India in all sorts of trouble. India 112/5

India 111/4 after 30 overs: Mithali Raj and Richa Ghosh in the middle, a partnership we saw quite a bit in Queenstown. The third 10-over phase has completely belonged to Pakistan after India made a comeback from 10-20.

WICKET! 28.4: Harmanpreet Kaur 5(14) lbw Nida Dar Oh dear. This now a proper comeback from Pakistan in the match! Harmanpreet Kaur moves forward, misses the turn and is hit on the back leg. Big appeal, given out. But it looked like the ball was turning and going a bit over. Nope, DRS says all three reds. Harman can’t quite believe that, Pakistan delighted. India 108/4

India 106/3 after 28 overs: With Deepti at 3, Mithali at 4, Harman at 5... India need Smriti Mandhana to not get out at the times she tends to sometimes. The captain and vice captain can play catch up but it would be good for India to avoid prolonged lulls.

India 104/3 after 27 overs: After a good spell from the likes of Nashra Sandhu, Nida Dar and Anam Amin time for some pace of Fatima Sana.

India 102/3 after 26 overs: No secret that both Mithali and Harman take time to get going. The run-rate drops below four again. Pakistan pulling things back nicely.

WICKET! 24.1: Smriti Mandhana 52 (75) ct & b Anam Amin Both set batters gone. Smriti Mandhana lobs one back to Anam Amin, who troubled her all through the powerplay. Soft dismissal, checked her off drive and lobbed it back to the bowler. Good low catch. India have to rebuild again at the halfway stage India 98/3

WICKET! Over 21.6: Deepti Sharma b Nashra Sandhu 40 (57) A moment of celebration for India is quickly followed by a wicket. Deepti Sharma, who loves playing the sweep, misreads the length from Nashra and is bowled. Out on 40.

Half century for Smriti Mandhana! She took her time in the middle, overcame early pressure (nearly got out once) but has found her timing since.

India 87/1 after 20 overs: 55 runs in the 10 overs since the powerplay ended with Smriti Mandhana hitting a six. Momentum with India now, going nice and steady.

India 83/1 after 19 overs: Mandhana, who was finding the fielders on the offside with great accuracy, is now finding the gaps. Funny what spending time in the middle does to you. Nida Dar finishes that over with another delivery that shows the pitch has turn. Deepti, while beaten, would have secretly enjoyed that.

SMRITI MANDHANA 38(55)

DEEPTI SHARMA: 30 (43)

India 74/1 after 17 overs: If Deepti Sharma ends up playing a match-winning knock for India, we should return to this over. A shot of the highest quality through midwicket for four and then a well-run three, putting pressure on the outfielder.

DRINKS: India 65/1 after 16 overs India’s running between the wickets (a problem for a while now) once again quite ordinary today. Miscommunication, not pushing the fielders in the deep, missing out on a few runs here and there. But hey, they have recovered alright from the slow start.

India 57/1 after 14 overs: Oh close! A direct hit from the brilliant Diana Baig, but Mandhana had just managed to ground her bat with a plonk. Sunny G might have something to say about that. But she is safe.

India 52/1 after 13 overs: A rather clumsy over, as Hussain puts it, from Fatima. Wides, a no ball... but the free hit wasn’t quite costly.

So lovely from ICC content team. If this doesn’t put a smile on your face this Sunday morning...

India 46/1 after 12 overs: Rachael Haynes showed the value of sticking it out in the middle when things were not quite going her way early on. India’s very own left-handed opener can take confidence from that. Going better now. Another four off Dar, this one swept behind square.

India 38/1 after 11 overs: Deepti Sharma with a slog, but well placed through midwicket for four as pacer Fatima comes on.

India 33/1 after 10 overs: SIX! Couple of deliveries after seeing a lofted shot plug in the outfield, Smriti Mandhana finishes that powerplay with a six over mid-off. India needed that. Smriti Mandhana needed that. SM taking on Nida Dar in that over, despite it being not an ideal match-up with the ball turning away.

India 24/1 after 9 overs: Smriti Mandhana must have had her heart in the mouth. The pressure was built up through dot balls as the opener kept finding the fielders. Luckily when she tried going big, she missed the fielder. More of that again in the next over, more good ground fielding too. A superb cover drive but stopped sharply.

India 21/1 after 8 overs: Possibly a huge moment. Pakistan have packed the offside field for Smriti Mandhana, she kept finding them, kept finding them, and then when the ball was full, went for a big shot that fell away from the fielder somehow. Big pressure built up, and it was a release shot that could have gone so wrong for India. But luckily for them, their star batter is still in the middle.

India 17/1 after 7 overs: Baig’s turn to get a maiden over in. Deepti Sharma finds the fielder with one cover drive but otherwise, no real attempt to get off strike.

India 17/1 after 6 overs: Another great over for Pakistan, Anam concedes just 2 and a misfield involved there. Mandhana finding the fielders on the packed offside corridor. Pakistan have done their homework, India will hope their opener remains patient.

India 15/1 after 5 overs: Smriti Mandhana showing off that timing of hers! Superbly pushed past midwicket for four. A no ball from Baig but the free hit is not all that costly. First good over for India.

The little things... in form, Shafali Verma would have put that full toss on her pad away for four at the very least. She hit it straight to midwicket. No run was taken despite a slight misfield. Couple of deliveries later, swung for the big shot and was bowled.

India 5/1 after 4 overs: Another tidy over from Anam. India under early pressure.

WICKET! Over 2.6: Shafali Verma 0(6) b Diana Baig Seemed like this was coming. Shafali Verma gone! A 6-ball duck for the Indian opener. Diana Baig strikes, the leg stump has gone for a short walk as the Indian swung for the hills but missed it completely. India are off to a nervy start in Tauranga. India 4/1

From the huddle to the first few overs, Pakistan have come out with 10 on the energy scale right away (some of it nervous energy). India just a bit nervy, like a couple of full tosses have not been put away, running a bit tentative.

India 3/0 after 2 overs: We will see a lot of spin today, and it is on show right away. *Anam Amin gets the new ball from the other end. Good start from Pakistan, who are bubbling on the field. Maiden over.

India 3/0 after 1 over: Nice start by pacer Diana Baig. Mandhana does have an issue with the ball angling away from here. Just a couple of edgy moments, and one that beat her.

National anthems done. Rousing stuff!

Playing XIs (via BCCI): Interestingly Harmanpreet Kaur listed at No 4 by the official graphic.

India: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Harmanpreet Kaur, Mithali Raj (C), Richa Ghosh (wk), Sneh Rana, Jhulan Goswami, Meghna Singh, Pooja Vastrakar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad

Pakistan: Javeria Khan, Sidra Ameen, Bismah Maroof (C), Omaima Sohail, Nida Dar, Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana, Sidra Nawaz (WK), Diana Baig, Nashra Sundhu, Anam Amin

Mithali Raj wasted no time to say India will be batting first. Bismah Maroof however said Pakistan were going to bowl first anyway. Both teams got what they wanted. Happy days.

TOSS UPDATE: Mithali Raj wins the toss and wastes no time to say India will bat first.

06.00 pm: Toss time.

05.45 am: Hello and welcome to live updates of India’s clash with Pakistan at the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup 2022.

It’s taken sometime for us to get here, but finally Mithali Raj and Co will be in action at the World Cup once again after that final at Lord’s in 2017. It should have been last year, but the pandemic happened. For two 38-year-old stars in the team, it meant another year of playing cricket, doing their daily routines, following the processes they have all their careers. There was no time to rest, not just yet. They decided to stick to their ambitions of having another crack at the title and here we are as Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami – now 39 – begin another marquee tournament. The support cast has grown in stature, the 2017 finalists have some bonafide stars in the XI but the tournament takes no heed to past glory. As Meg Lanning said, everyone starts at zero. As Mithali said, it’s a clean slate. A fresh start. Time to go sketching another journey.

What’s been the message to the team from you as a captain ahead of a big tournament like this?

Mithali Raj: I think as a team, we need to get in with a clean slate as confident unit. Believe that we can always turn things around and play according to the situation. It’s very important to be in the present when you have a longer tournament. Be aware on the ground and play according to the situation.

Screenshots in the blog courtesy ICC Match Centre / Disney+Hotstar.

Stats courtesy ESPNCricinfo Statsguru, and applicable for women’s ODIs unless stated.