Hobart, Mar 1 (IANS) India captain Harmanpreet Kaur admitted that her side failed to maintain consistency and played poor cricket in the ODI format after they suffered a heavy 185-run defeat against Australia in the third ODI played at the Bellerive Oval on Sunday.
Chasing a massive target of 410, India were bowled out for 224 in 45.1 overs as Australia completed a 3-0 sweep of the ODI series and took an 8-2 lead in the multi-format contest.
“I think overall we didn’t play good cricket. In T20, we were doing all the things right and in ODI, we didn’t play good cricket. I think that is something which cost us,” Harmanpreet said after the match.
Highlighting the difference between the two formats, the Indian skipper pointed out that consistency is key in 50-over cricket.
“ODI is a long game, and you have to keep doing the right things again and again. I think we kept making too many mistakes,” Harmanpreet explained.
She also credited the Australian side for their dominant display. “Credit goes to the Australian team also, they really played good cricket, and they didn’t give us a chance to bounce back.”
Despite the setback, the Indian skipper stressed that the series offered important lessons for the upcoming matches.
“A lot of learning for us, and definitely we will go back and think about how we have to go about in ODI cricket,” the 36-year-old said.
With limited time to regroup before the start of the iconic test match at Perth, Harmanpreet emphasised the need to stay mentally strong.
“Keeping everybody in a good space of mind is very important. I know we have very less time to prepare, but now it’s only about believing in yourself, keeping yourself in a good frame of mind and doing the right thing for the team,” she added.
The Indian women’s team will end their tour with a test match against Australia to be played at the Perth Stadium from March 6.
–IANS
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