Not Smriti Mandhana: Chamari Athapaththu names this India star as biggest threat before T20 WC clash

Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu feels that Jemimah Rodrigues will be a "key wicket" for her team in the Women's T20 World Cup match between India and Sri Lanka. India and Sri Lanka will face each other in an important Group A clash of the tournament on October 9 (Wednesday).

While Athapaththu labeled Jemimah as an important wicket, she also claimed that the other India batters like Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, and Richa Ghosh are struggling. Clearly, the Sri Lankan captain is looking to play mind games ahead of the much-important clash.

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Chamari Athapaththu plays mind games ahead of IND vs SL Women's T20 World Cup match

While speaking to the reporters on the match eve, Chamari Athapaththu noted that three of India's premier batters, Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, and Richa Ghosh, are struggling on the pitch offering low pace and bounce.

"I think players like Shafali, Smriti, Richa are struggling because of low bounce and pace on the track," Chamari Athapaththu was quoted as saying by RevSportz.

Shafali Verma, who is known for her free-flowing strokeplay, has struggled so far in both games. While she was out for a low score in the first game against New Zealand, she managed to score a crucial 32 against Pakistan.

Smriti Mandhana and Richa Ghosh have struggled to get going as well. Mandhana has scored just 19 runs while Ghosh has scored just 12 runs in two matches so far. All these batters will be expected to get amongst the runs in the next match.

Chamari Athapaththu labels Jemimah Rodrigues as "Key wicket"

🚨 Athapaththu - "I think players like Shafali, Smriti, Richa are struggling because of low bounce and pace on the track. Jemimah Rodrigues has looked good compared to all of them and will be a Kew wicket tomorrow"

"harmanpreet also scored some important runs in the last game.… https://t.co/0bhiGKvykg

— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) October 8, 2024

In the press conference, Chamari Athapaththu admitted that Jemimah Rodrigues has looked the best among the Indian batters and her wicket will be key for Sri Lanka. The SL captain further mentioned that they have prepared specific plans for all Indian batters.

"Jemimah Rodrigues has looked good compared to all of them and will be a key wicket tomorrow. Harmanpreet (Kaur) also scored some important runs in the last game. So we have our plans for them and now, all we need to execute those," Athapaththu added.

Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues key for India

Harmanpreet Kaur has got good starts in both the matches but has failed to score a big innings so far. She scored a vital 29 off 24 balls against Pakistan before retiring hurt. She scored 15 in the first match against New Zealand.

Meanwhile, Jemimah Rodrigues has scored 36 runs so far but has looked impressive with her array of sweep shots. Her batting skills can be crucial to India in the middle overs as she is an excellent player of spin bowling.

It is a very important match for India who will be looking to win at any cost. The Women in Blue have won one and lost one game so far in the tournament and are in the fourth position in Group A. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka are still looking for their first win of the tournament.