The Indian Women team would not be deprived of their skipper Mithali Raj in their attempt of attaining a consolation win in an already lost ODI series when they take the field in New Road Worcester. BCCI confirmed in a tweet that, Mithali, who did not take the field after injuring her shoulder while batting, is for the 3rd ODI which would also be her last game on the tour as the dynamic batter is not part of the T20I set-up.
"Captain @M_Raj03 has recovered and is training with the girls as we prepare for the 3rd WODI tomorrow here at New Road, Worcester," the BCCI tweeted. The 38-year-old would also have another shot at becoming the highest run-scorer in international cricket by overtaking former England skipper Charlotte Edwards. Mithali, with 10,262 runs in all three formats combined is just 12 runs away from overtaking Edwards’ 10,273.
The Indian team would be looking to go all out in the last game with nothing to lose scenario and fast bowler Shikha Pandey underscored the same point while speaking in the pre-match press conference.
“We want to be going ahead and play a fearless brand of cricket, and we're working towards it. This is kind of a build-up to the World Cup next year, and in the games ahead we will have a positive attitude and we will look to score runs for the team to win,” said Pandey, who wicked two wickets in the second ODI and was one of the reasons as to why India fought deep in that game.
People were expecting newcomer wicket-keeper Indrani Roy to get a game in the third ODI based on her batting abilities. But it seems that the team would prefer Taniya Bhatia’s wicket-keeping skills more. “Taniya standing up to the stumps made a huge difference. Taniya is doing a great job, and it is about responding to the situation on the field,” Shikha said about the Chandigarh born.