Mackay (Australia): Australia A bowlers, led by pace-bowling stalwart Kim Garth, ran roughshod as India A suffered a demoralising 114-run defeat in the second unofficial T20I as the hosts took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
For the second consecutive match of the multi-format series, India A won the toss and chose to field, a decision that backfired big time with Australia A batting stalwart and the Southern Stars skipper, Alyssa Healy played a superb 70-run knock (44 balls) to guide her side to a competitive 187 for 4.
India, led by left-arm spinner Radha Yadav, were all out for 73 in 15.1 overs.
Healy’s 95-run partnership with Tahlia Wilson (43 off 35 balls) was the cornerstone of the home team’s strong showing, with last game’s half-centurion Anika Learoyd (35) and Courtney Webb (26 not out) doing their bit to take the score closer to the 200-run mark.
Healy, one of the most destructive batters in the world and a veteran of 162 WT20Is, once again showcased her class following a below-par showing the previous game at the same venue with a belligerent innings that was studded with 12 boundaries.
She was especially harsh on Radha clobbering the India spinner for three boundaries in the sixth over and struck another three fours off spinner Minnu Mani in the 10th over.
Her blazing innings saw Australia A notch up 94 for no loss in first 10 overs before Tahlia was consumed by Radha in the 11th over. However, Healy continued her blitzkrieg, smashing another three boundaries off left-arm spinner Tanuja Kanwar in the 13th over, which fetched the home team a healthy 15 runs.
However, Radha had the last laugh getting rid of Healy in the 15th over. But that was hardly a respite as Learoyd, who played a pivotal role in the previous game by scoring 50 runs, struck Minnu for three boundaries as the spinner conceded 16 runs.
India faltered at the start losing their hard-hitting opener Shafali Verma for three runs, her second consecutive poor score in the series after the high of playing a key role in India’s maiden T20I away series win against England recently.
Her opening partner Uma Chetry was the first to depart as India lost both their openers with just three runs on the board.
Australia A’s 29-year-old pacer Garth was unplayable and returned figures of 4 for 7 in three overs. With the top-four gone for just 16 runs, it was always going to be an uphill task for India A and their innings folded up under the relentless onslaught of pacers, including Tess Flintoff (2/23).
Only two India players touched double digits with Vrinda Dinesh and Minnu scoring 21 and 20 respectively.
Brief scores: Australia A 187 for 4 in 20 overs (Tahlia Wilson 43, Alyssa Healy 70, Anika Learoyd 35; Radha Yadav 2/35) beat India A 73 all out in 15.1 overs (Kim Garth 4/7, Amy Edgar 2/17, Tess Flintoff 2/23).
