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After U-19 triumph, Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh eye a World Cup double
The senior World Cup is also being held in South Africa like the junior tournament, which helped the two youngsters acclimatise
Being an integral part of the Harmanpreet Kaur-led India team for the ICC T20 Women’s World Cup, Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh had another significant tournament to compete in, also in South Africa, ahead of the mega event starting on Friday.
While Shafali led India in the T20 U-19 Women’s World Cup, Richa was the wicket-keeper. After helping India win their first ICC title, Shafali declared that she wanted to replicate the triumph with the senior team.
“It’s a dream come true winning the World Cup. It is now time to lift another World Cup next month,” Shafali said.
Harmanpreet too hoped her team would be inspired, having lost thrice in the final of ICC tournaments.
“After watching the U-19 World Cup we are motivated to do what they have done. They have done it and we have not done it yet. It was a very special moment for all of us and has provided added inspiration,” the attacking batter said.
Having been in South Africa for over 40 days, Shafali and Richa have had ample time adjusting to the conditions and pitches. They travelled to India briefly with the rest of the U-19 squad to attend a BCCI felicitation in Ahmedabad and it is back to the grind for them with the India team as they prepare for the warm-up games followed by the World Cup.
High on confidence, Shafali and Richa could well be the best prepared in the team.
“I had a word with Richa in Ahmedabad after the felicitation ceremony. She was thrilled to be part of the winning team. At the same time, she realises that another big tournament awaits them. Shafali and Richa are mature enough to shift focus to the WC and carry forward the momentum, Richa’s father Manabendra Ghosh said over phone from Siliguri.
“Days spent in South Africa will definitely raise their confidence. When you win a tournament of the magnitude of a World Cup, your confidence goes up, performance peaks. This is exactly what happens with Australia when they clinch global events,” he said.
Richa, a middle-order batter, had scores of 49, 33, 7, 4. She didn’t get to bat in the semifinals and final.
The top-order contributed the bulk of India’s runs. Openers Shweta Sehrawat (297 runs, avg 99.00, HS 92*, 3x50s) and Shafali (172, avg 24.57, HS 78, 1x50) provided India great starts in the U-19 World Cup. Shweta finished with the tournament’s second highest aggregate though Shafali could not convert starts.
“I have to say Shafali is a very selfless captain. I will give full marks for her effort in the World Cup,” said the U-19 India team coach Nooshin Al Khadeer.
“When you are playing at the top level, the expectations are high and you are constantly looking to do well. Shafali and Richa have done well for the senior team, making a mark at an early age. When they joined the U-19 team, I just told them to go out there and enjoy, play their game. I told them to go back in time and remember how they played in their childhood. Both adapted well to the team combination; their contribution was immense,” she said.
It will be interesting when Shafali walks out to open with Smriti Mandhana in India’s first game against Pakistan on Sunday. Whenever the two have had good opening partnerships at an impressive run rate, India has won, be it ODIs or T20s.
Nooshin believes that the experience gained by Shafali and Richa playing in South African conditions will benefit India in the World Cup.
“Shafali’s and Richa’s stay for over 40 days in South Africa for both the bilateral games and the World Cup will definitely give them an upper hand going into the senior tournament. It will be like home conditions for them. This will help them prepare better for their matches. Obviously, their roles will change in the senior team, and the level of competition as well. But they will be confident and prepared. The belief to do well and emerge victorious will be there,” Nooshin added.
