Ghosh not fazed by Australia threat ahead of semi-final

Richa Ghosh.

Khel Today Bureau 
New Delhi: India wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh is more than aware of Australia’s formidable record in ICC Women’s T20 World Cup but is not letting that faze her ahead of their semi-final clash.

Australia have won five of the seven ICC Women’s T20 World Cups that have been staged and are favourites to claim a sixth in Cape Town on Sunday, but India’s recent record against them is good – defeating them in the group stage in both 2018 and 2020.

Those wins – combined with victory in a super over thriller in December – are giving Ghosh and her team the confidence to back themselves against Meg Lanning’s superstar side.

Ghosh said: “We can beat Australia, it’s not that we can’t beat them – because we have done it before.

“Yes, they are a strong team but we can beat them.

“We are improving our mindset, because the game is everyone’s. The one who is mentally strong in the game, they will win. We have worked on that and now let’s just see what happens.

“When you beat Australia, you get a lot of confidence because they are a good team, a strong team.”

Australia are a team feared for their ability to be able to chase down any score but Ghosh refuses to let the toss be a key factor in India’s planning and is instead focused on what they can control.

“It is comfortable for them because they have a strong batting order – right down to the last batter,” she added.

“But we have that too, there is no doubt about it and the toss is not in anyone’s control.

“Whatever happens, we will have to take that situation and go with it – so, we are not thinking about what to do.

“But we are ready with the plan – if we bat first, we will see what we can do with the bat, and if we bowl first, we will see how much we can restrict them.”

It has been an excellent tournament on a personal note for Ghosh, who has been not out in three of the four matches so far, something she attributes to avoiding thinking about the bowler she is facing.

She said: “I just look at the ball and try to play, who is bowling and what is the situation, the situation matters – how is the pitch behaving for example.

“I mainly focus on one ball at a time and I focus more on looking at the ball and playing.

“Because when we think that bowler is a top bowler, then we start to get nervous but obviously I don’t want that, so I just look at the ball and play.”