Skill development on Raman's radar after humbling losses

India failed to score three runs in the last over and lost by one run with Mithali Raj at the other end. © AFP

Smart and sensible cricket is the need of the hour as far as the Indian Women's T20 team is concerned, stressed captain Smriti Mandhana and coach WV Raman after the hosts suffered a 3-0 whitewash at the hands of England. The middle-order yet again painted a sorry picture as India suffered a one-run loss in the third and final T20I in Guwahati on Saturday (March 9), failing to get the job done despite a target of 120 and the fact that they needed only three in the final over.

Inexperience had a role to play in the latest loss as Bharati Fulmali was unable to rotate the strike in the final over, consuming three dot deliveries before her dismissal while Anuja Patil went for a slog first ball, with neither of the two attempting to try and get to more experienced Mithali Raj back on strike. Raj, who scored an unbeaten 30, was left stranded at the non-striker's end for the entire final over, having guided the latter part of the chase.

"It's just that the newcomers getting a little bit of experience to know what to do under a little bit of pressure and challenge. Once that improves, I think it will be a very good situation for us in the future. And as you see, the only way is up. So I'm not totally either sulking or mourning about it. From here on, the only way is up. That's the way I'd look at it," said Raman, who added that Raj was comfortable playing the role needed of an experienced batter in the middle-order; just that she didn't receive support from the other end.

"We had a chat about what is she [Raj] comfortable doing and what suits the side as well. Since Harman [Harmanpreet Kaur] was not here, we needed someone with experience in the middle order. That's the reason she stuck to her slot at four. Quite obviously, she also needs to be backed up by others. Unfortunately, that kind of support didn't come. It's all a case of what a specific player can bring to the table and how it suits the team's needs. That's how things will happen."

The coach mentioned that the 3-0 result wasn't a true reflection of India's capability in the T20 format although he felt that there is scope for improvement in terms of skillset. "They have been playing good cricket but in T20 what you need is smart cricket under pressure. Young side, will learn along the way. Even though the scoreline says 3-0, not playing as well as we could, yet it was not a total washout in terms of the way we lost it. That's heartening," Raman said.

"First they need to work a lot on their skills. Once the development in terms of skills happen, then all other things come into play because tactically everybody is aware of what needs to be done, but tactics cannot be executed unless the technical base is good enough," he added.

Meanwhile, both captain and coach were lavish in their praise of the bowlers, with Mandhana mentioning that the bowlers made her feel comfortable in her first series as captain.

"Definitely, our bowlers were really good. Where I was telling them to bowl or where I was placing the field, they were bowling exactly that. I always feel that a bowler makes the captain look better. So it is not the other way around," who also reflected on her captaincy.

"After the first match I was nervous, I had to throw that out of my system and I had concentrate on what I can do better for the team. The last two matches, I thought I was in a better headspace to lead the team. Today our bowlers did brilliantly well. It is just the skill part and mental part that cost us the match," she said.