Smriti Mandhana Wants India's Middle Order To Improve

India’s star batsman Smriti Mandhana has said that India’s middle-order needs to improve if they eye a win in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup beginning in Australia on February 21.

India’s middle-order has been out of form and repeated failures have hurt the team to a great extent.

Mandhana has been the lone warrior for the team in recent times and when it comes to the biggest of stages, we must remember that cricket is not a one-man show.

In the 2017 World Cup final, India had lost seven wickets for 28 runs to go down to England by nine runs, while in the recent tri-series final against Australia, they collapsed to 144 all out after being 115 for three at one stage while chasing 155.

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Smriti Mandhana Wants The Indian Middle-Order to Reagin Its Form:

“The middle order could definitely improve,” said Mandhana.

“There are some things we still have to figure out with our batting and we are trying hard to do that. The best way to support the middle order is for the top order to bat 20 overs. I think we need to try and bat long as a top-four. We must try not to get out in the 16th or 17th over and the problem will be sorted if we can stay until the 20th over,” added the 23-year-old.

Australia head coach Matthew Mott believes India have the most feared batting line-up at the T20 World Cup and Mandhana agrees that they have a balanced batting order.

“We can be very unpredictable on our day, but I’d like to agree (with Mott),” she said. “We have some great batters and our order is very balanced. The top four or five are quite settled. We’ve had the same top five for the last year and that’s been a good thing for us,” Mandhana was quoted as saying by the ICC.

India will begin their T20 World Cup campaign on February 21 and their first clash will be with the mighty Australians. Team India recently lost to Australia in the tri-series final.

However, the Women in Blue had also defeated the hosts in a crucial league game.

Mandhana was the top scorer in the game as she played a crucial knock of 55 runs. Another young prospect, Shafali Verma blasted 49 from 28 balls to help India chase 177 losing just three wickets in the process.

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