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India opening batter Smriti Mandhana was struck on the head in the early stages of the warm-up match ahead of the upcoming Women's 50-over World Cup. She was hit on the head by a Shabnim Ismail bouncer during the warm-up match against South Africa on Sunday, reported ICC's official website. The left-handed batter was then looked upon by the team doctor and she retired hurt after an over and a half.
India skipper Mithali Raj on Saturday confirmed that Harmanpreet Kaur will serve as her deputy in the upcoming Women's 50-over World Cup. In the last two ODIs against New Zealand, Deepti Sharma donned the hat of vice-captain. Harmanpreet did not play the fourth ODI, while she did make a comeback in the final ODI, Deepti stayed on as the vice-captain.
women's ODI here on Thursday. Having lost all matches played here so far, including the lone T20I, the Mithali Raj-led side is finding it difficult to stem the rot and faces the ignominy of a one-sided series defeat days ahead of the World Cup. The series defeat is India's fourth in the last one year, having lost to South Africa, England and Australia earlier.
The fourth women's ODI between India and New Zealand on Tuesday had to be reduced to a 20-over game following a rain delay. But the shortened the game immediately saw some high-octane action after India won the toss and put hosts New Zealand into bat at the John Davies Oval in Queenstown. New Zealand captain Sophie Devine looked in ominous touch and smashed the Indian bowlers to all parts of the ground. But her stay at the crease ended thanks to a stunning diving catch from Smriti Mandhana at backward point.
India women T20I captain Harmanpreet Kaur has been having a torrid time with the bat off late and luck too seems to have deserted her. Things went from bad to worse for the middle-order batter on Friday in the third women's ODI against New Zealand. She was caught napping after playing a shot and had to pay the price with her wicket. India went on to lose the match in Queenstown by three wickets, with New Zealand taking an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the five-match ODI series.
Harmanpreet Kaur "can't survive in the team" on the 171 she scored in the 2017 World Cup and it is time to drop her starting with the third ODI against New Zealand, said former India captain Diana Edulji. Edulji also wants to drop Shafali Verma for the next game with Smriti Mandhana expected to return after completing quarantine. In the star player's absence, S Meghana has made an impact while Shafali continues to struggle in the 50-over format since making her debut last year.
Staring at another series defeat, a struggling India will welcome the return of star opener Smriti Mandhana for the third women's ODI against New Zealand here on Friday. Mandhana, the ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year, had exited mandatory quarantine in Christchurch to join the squad ahead of second ODI but needed a few days to get match ready.
Smriti Mandhana out, the Indian women's cricket team will look to sort some combination issues when it starts the five-ODI series against New Zealand here on Saturday. The tour of New Zealand started with a reversal after the visitors went down by 18 runs in the one-off T20I and skipper Mithali Raj will be keen to provide the team a winning start in its ODI campaign, which is crucial ahead of the ICC World Cup next month.