New Delhi: Does frustration at the start of a day spoil the whole 24 hours or not? At the same time it is very difficult to interpret, because if the dawn is not so good, the dusk also brings you sorrow. Defeat by New Zealand in the opening match of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 was not what India and a billion cricket fans expected.
Friday afternoon we all painted a picture of a victorious Indian team in our minds, but the evening, unfortunately, forced us to rub it in. It was nothing short of a nightmare for India Eve in her first competition, having entered the showpiece event as one of the favourites. India and the Kiwis have met on four occasions in the past at a major ICC event and the record so far is equal. While the New Zealand team faced two clashes in the 2009 and 2010 editions, India matched it by winning the group matches in the 2018 and 2020 editions.
India is an all-round failure
If it is a match from Men’s T20 World Cup or any Men’s T20 event, a first innings score of 160 is considered moderate. Since we are not used to seeing many 150+ games in women’s cricket, we have to put this one in the high score category. The previous three encounters in the ongoing 2024 World Cup saw scores of 120 and under, so the stats stand in support.
India’s first failure to let the Kiwis cross the 150-run mark, which occurred with the ball, added to their unwanted record of often losing matches after putting up a 150-plus score in the first innings. The biggest thing that shook the Indian women’s team was that despite being a batting-heavy side, filled with some classic players, they all failed in the chase. The top 4 and the extra two couldn’t resist the Kiwi bowlers, failing to show their mettle on the most important occasion.
Is there some positivity to come out of a disappointing loss, or does it just bring more misery?
Is more damage good?
Unlike the previous editions of the marquee event, where India started their campaign with wins and eventually succumbed to the pressure in the crucial knockouts, this edition proved to be different. The defeat in the tournament opener was the first reality check for the Harmanpreet Kaur-led team, which will ideally play a key role in regrouping themselves and sit down and strategize for the upcoming matches.
In our way of thinking, things don’t have to come out in the same manner, but it is observed that first the fall changed things positively and then gave the desired result. India should learn from this defeat and try to bounce back with their best performance in the upcoming games. In a tough Group A, India next face arch-rivals Pakistan before taking on Asian champions Sri Lanka and the most successful team Australia in the final league match.
India have a good record against rivals Pakistan and the last meeting between the teams in Asia Cup 2024 proved to favor the former. But Pakistan will be brimming with confidence after a dominant win over Sri Lanka in their tournament opener. It won’t be a cakewalk for India in the upcoming ties but they need to prove their mettle with a better approach and attitude in realizing and making the dreams of a hundred crore Indians come true by bringing home the elusive World Cup.