Not MS Dhoni, Mithali Raj The Real Chase-Master?

India women’s team skipper Mithali Raj, on Tuesday, played yet another crucial knock, scoring an unbeaten 63 as India beat New Zealand by eight wickets in the second ODI to seal the three-match series with a match to go.

Led by the veteran Jhulan Goswami, India bowled out New Zealand for just 161 inside 45 overs. Goswami picked up 3 for 23 while Ekta Bisht, Deepti Sharma and Poonam Yadav picked two wickets apiece to dismiss the White Ferns for just 161 runs. Barring skipper Amy Satterthwaite (71), none of the New Zealand batter could put up any resistance in front of the visitors. Consequently, New Zealand kept on losing wickets at regular intervals and were all out for a subpar total once again.

That is it! Mithali Raj finishes it off with a SIX. India win by 8 wickets and lead the three-match series 2-0. #NZvIND

Details – https://t.co/HpmPFBz0T2 pic.twitter.com/neLHj6FJzz

— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) January 29, 2019

In reply, India suffered two early setbacks in their chase. Opener Jemimah Rodrigues fell for an 8-ball duck while Deepti Sharma departed for 8 off 11. India were in a spot of bother at 15 for 2 in the fifth over before Smriti Mandhana (90) and Mithali Raj joined forces to steer India to victory. The duo shared an unbeaten stand of 151 runs to guide India to a historic ODI series win.

While Mandhana batted in her usual flowing manner, Mithali took her time. She mixed caution with aggression to make sure the chase does not get off the track. In fact, at one stage she batted at a strike-rate of less than 30.  And as the game finished, the fans compared Mithali with MS Dhoni due to her slow match-winning knock. But amidst all this, Mithali managed to get past Dhoni after playing yet another match-winning knock.

Mithali now averages an astronomical 111.29 in successful chases in ODI cricket – male or female – overhauling the Bradman-esque average of Dhoni (103.07). Indian men’s team captain Virat Kohli has an average of 96.23 in successful chases in the format.