I Like Playing In Pressure Situations - Deepti Sharma On Her All-Round Show In India's Second T20I Win vs England
By Shaan Singh
Updated - 12 Jul 2021, 06:34 PM
Deepti Sharma, 23, has taken a crucial position of the all-rounder in India‘s team, and she was at the forefront of India’s win over England on Sunday in the second T20I with the series now level at 1-1.
Batting first in Hove, India put on 148 runs on the board, helped by Deepti Sharma’s late 24-run knock. She would then return with bowling figures of 1/18 in 4 overs, and also inflict a crucial run-out of England captain Heather Knight.
Deepti Sharma, who has featured in over 110 international matches, says that she has got better at reading the game now, and revels in high-pressure situations, as she did on Sunday.
“I like playing in pressure situations, whether it is in any position in the team – batting, bowling, or fielding. As an allrounder, I just want to contribute to my department and take the team forward,” Deepti Sharma said at the post-match virtual press conference.“I like leading from the front, like in domestic tournaments when I play as a senior player and win matches for my team, that gives different confidence.“When you bring that confidence here, of course this platform is not easy but it depends on how you handle it. I now know how to read and handle situations, so I find it easy to play because I know I can handle things easily now,” she added.
Deepti Sharma talks about the turning point in India’s comeback:
Chasing 149, England were cruising with opener Tammy Beaumont (59) and captain Heather Knight (30) at 106/2. In the 14th over, Deepti Sharma put the breaks on that with the wicket of Beaumont, out lbw, and then an unusual run-out of Knight at the non-striker’s end.
From there the hosts suffered a slide and couldn’t recover as boundaries dried up and wickets continued to fell with India taking a close 8-run victory in a game that seemed to be going England’s way at one stage.
“It was a crucial over and crucial wicket [of Beaumont]. Earlier [in the same over] also we had taken a DRS [review against Beaumont] but we were unlucky [as the had ball pitched outside off]. Next, when I bowled [Beaumont was given lbw, England reviewed and this time] it was umpire’s call and it was hitting the stumps. It gave us a lot of confidence.
“We bounced back after that and then the run-out helped us to pull back the match,” she stated.
With the series level at 1-1, the third and final T20I and the final game of the tour is on July 14 in Chelmsford.
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