Women’s T20 World Cup | Bowling with injured finger was painful but team comes first, shares Poonam Yadav

It was a valiant performance by the Indian women at the Spotless Stadium as they bludgeoned Australia by 17 runs to kick off their Women’s T20 World Cup campaign with a thriller. Having put up a timid total of 132 on board, Alyssa Healy’s half-century almost took away the game from the Indians before leggie Poonam Yadav and her flurry of googlies pulled back the game for the visitors.

Yadav, who missed the tri-series nursing a finger injury, proved to be a lethal surprise package for the Aussies as they fell prey to her slow and highly deceptive deliveries. The leg spinner bowled through pain to scalp 4 valuable wickets, which included those of half centurion Alyssa Healy and star all-rounder Ellyse Perry, who went for a golden duck.

"It is painful, but when I play the match I forget it," Yadav was quoted by ESPN Cricinfo. "Bowling-wise I was confident I could bowl at any time."

Yadav heaped their spin consultant Narendra Hirwani with praise for helping her understand the pitch. The former Indian leggie played an important role in her adapting to the conditions Down Under having missed the very important tri-series which preceded the gala event.

 "Mentally he helps us a lot. He talks about understanding the bounce. He talks about we all have variations, but when to use them how to use the bounce and the right areas to pitch."