Deepti Sharma celebrates the wicket of South African batter Anneke Bosch during the second women's ODI cricket match between India and South Africa at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru, Wednesday, June 19, 2024.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Bengaluru: Senior all-rounder Deepti Sharma said on June 22 that India will not treat their third and final women’s ODI against South Africa as a dead-rubber, but they will be looking to consolidate the gains from previous matches.
India have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series after winning the first two matches by 143 runs and four runs.
“Yes, we have won the series but we will not approach this match as one of academic interest. We look to learn from whatever opportunities we get, as we will be going into the one-off Test (in Chennai) later this week,” said Deepti in the pre-match press meet.
The off-spinner had showcased her all-round skills in the first match, making a crucial 37 that helped India recover from a shaky 99 for five.
The 26-year-old also bagged two wickets. “I love to tackle pressure situations. My thought process is very clear. I always want to make the team win or place the team in a winning position whether it is with my batting or bowling,” she added.
In both the matches, Indian top-order made a rather slow start before gaining acceleration in the middle and end phases.
Deepti said the India batters have showed good adaptive skills in the series.
“The openers played as per the conditions. The ball was moving around a little bit in the initial overs, and they played within themselves. They adapted well.
“After 10-12 overs, we built some good partnerships. They used every scoring opportunity in that area and that’s a positive for us – the way we capitalised later on,” she said.
Deepti said Indian players have been working on improving their fielding standards.
“We have improved as a fielding unit. You can see that wonderful catch by Pooja (Vastrakar to dismiss centurion Marizanne Kapp).
“It shifted the momentum for us (in the second ODI) and we are further working on our fielding as a unit,” she said.