Women's U-19 T20 World Cup: Shafali, Sehrawat's blitzkrieg help India crush UAE
The Hindu
Skipper Shafali Verma cracked a blistering 78 while opener Shweta Sehrawat sparkled with an unbeaten 74 as India outplayed UAE by 122 runs
Skipper Shafali Verma cracked a blistering 78 while opener Shweta Sehrawat sparkled with an unbeaten 74 as India outplayed UAE by 122 runs in the inaugural Women's U-19 T20 World Cup here on Monday.
Shafali (78 off 34 balls) was at her destructive best and joined forced with an equally belligerent Sehrawat (74 not out off 49 deliveries) before Richa Ghosh smacked a 29-ball 49 to help India post an imposing 219 for three at Willowmoore Park.
The Indian bowlers then restricted UAE to 97 for five, the result showing the gulf between the two sides.
With the win, India have consolidated their top spot in Group D.
Invited to bat, Shafali, who has already played over 70 international matches for the senior team, including 51 T20Is, and Sehrawat, stitched a 111-run stand for the first wicket.
Sehrawat made her intentions clear from the first over, and after playing two dots, she smacked three boundaries to plunder 12 runs.
Shafali followed suit in the next over as she also hit three fours. The 18-year-old got the first maximum of the Indian innings in the fifth over.
Asian Games champion Avinash Sable opened his season in the 3000m steeple chase with a silver in the Portland Track Festival, a World Athletics Continental Tour bronze event, in Oregon on Saturday. He clocked 8:21.85s. Asian champion Parul Chaudhary took the bronze in the women’s 3000m steeple chase in a season-best 9:31.38s. Former Asian bronze medallist Sanjivani Jadhav struck gold in the women’s 10,000m in 32:22.77s, a time which was a second off her personal best, while Seema was sixth in 32:55.91s.