Hobart, Feb 26 (.) Australia are looking to seize momentum as the multi-format series against India shifts to Hobart, following what allrounder Ashleigh Gardner dubbed a “kind of perfect performance” in the opening one-dayer.
The Aussies and India have traded wins so far across the multi-format series, which is tied at four points apiece, with the hosts playing catch-up after dropping the first and third T20Is.
India, meanwhile, are confident captain Harmanpreet Kaur will be fit to feature in the second ODI, after she sat out the tourists’ fielding innings in Brisbane with a knee complaint, with allrounder Deepti Sharma on Friday declaring her skipper was “fit and fine”.
Australia came out swinging in the first of the three 50-over games, producing a clinical display at Allan Border Field with bat and ball to win by six wickets, despite losing star pair Ellyse Perry and Kim Garth to quad injuries for the series.
“We have played some good cricket along the way and have played some not-so good cricket in patches as well,” Gardner said of the multi-format series so far while speaking to reporters here
on Friday.
“So being able for us to string that together, I felt like that last game was kind of a perfect performance.
“I thought the bowlers really set the tone and then we chased down that total pretty convincingly.
“There was certainly disappointment within the camp to lose that T20 series, but we knew that when we focus on ourselves and we play really good cricket, that we are the best team, and I think we need to take a lot of confidence in that.”
Gardner said Australia had homed in on “adaptability” as their modus operandi for the remainder of the series.
Where the Allan Border Field pitch proved tricky at times, the allrounder said she expected far friendlier batting conditions in Hobart for the second and third ODIs, and Australia’s bowling
attack in particular would need to be on their toes against India’s star-studded top order.
“Going into the one-day series, I still feel like that’s probably one of our best formats and then getting the win up in Brisbane, we’ve got a very good record up there, and I think what we did really well was just focus on ourselves and make sure to keep our game plan really simple – (we adapted) when it was necessary, and that’s what we’re going to have to do tomorrow as well,” Gardner said.
“We can read into conditions before we actually get out there, but making sure that what we see is what we’re playing rather than having this preconceived idea of what this ground is going to (do).
“If we look at what Bellerive’s got to offer, it generally is a bit of a flatter track.
“We know that (India) want to take the game on, and we certainly saw that throughout the World Cup … (but) here in Australia there’s a little bit more bounce, and it’s a little bit more conducive
to bowling at times.
“I think just being able to adapt, full stop, is our MO going forward.”
With Garth and Perry out for the series, Australia are likely to stick with a similar XI to the one
they fielded in Brisbane.
They may consider calling on the expertise of local Nicola Carey, however, given the Tasmania allrounder’s familiarity with Bellerive Oval.
Uncapped teenage quick Lucy Hamilton could also come into calculations having been added to the ODI squad in the wake of Garth’s injury, and would provide a point of difference with her left-arm pace.
“We’ve got a fantastic squad that covers all bases,” Gardner said.
“Injuries to two of our prominent players is never ideal, of course, but we know that we can cover them if injuries do occur.”
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