Vadodara, Oct 22 India vice-captain Deepti Sharma on Thursday said she was ready to embrace her new responsibility and support skipper Smriti Mandhana as the team looks to build on its success, starting with the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe here from Friday.
Mandhana was recently appointed captain of India’s women’s white-ball teams, while Deepti was named vice-captain of the ODI side for the home series against Zimbabwe following Harmanpreet Kaur’s decision to step down as skipper across formats.
“When you get a new role, I take it as a challenge. When this news came, I felt good that I could help the other players as much as possible for the team. So, when I got this role, I was very happy,” Deepti said on the eve of the series opener.
“My mindset is to win as many matches as possible for the team, whether as a player or as vice-captain. In this role, I can help Smriti as much as possible,” she added.
Deepti predicted a batting-friendly pitch and said India would aim to post a total of 300 or more if they bat first.
“The pitch is very good. From the training session we had, we know it will be a good batting track. We have played so many matches, and our team knows very well how the wickets are going to be and what the conditions will be. So, we are pretty sure about what to expect,” she said.
“We will think of scoring more than 300. But it will still depend on what happens after the toss and what kind of wicket we get. That will also be in our minds. But if we bat first, we will score at least 300,” she added.
Deepti refused to reveal India’s playing combination for the series opener, saying the final decision would be taken closer to the match.
“The combination will be known just before the game. It will be good for the team if we can settle on a good combination, whether as bowlers or batters. Whatever combination we choose will be good for the team,” she said.
“Whether it is T20Is or ODIs, we always try to do well as a team, and we are doing that. There is no need for unnecessary changes. Whatever we have been doing well, we want to repeat.”
Deepti also cautioned against taking Zimbabwe lightly, pointing to the presence of new players and the side’s performances in the T20 format.
“We are playing against them for the first time, but they look like a different team. They have new players and have built a new team. But the way they have played in T20s, they have some very good players,” she said.
“You get to learn something from them because they are very good hitters.
(PTI News)
