Kerala's Minnu Mani shines in thriller as India A clinch series win in Australia
The victory helped India A clinch the series with one match to spare.
The victory helped India A clinch the series with one match to spare.
The victory helped India A clinch the series with one match to spare.
Brisbane: Kerala star Minnu Mani delivered a match-winning performance for India A, helping the team edge past Australia A in a thrilling final-over finish to clinch a series victory with one match to spare.
Minnu had bagged three wickets in the second game of the three-match series to reduce the hosts to 265/9 in their 50 overs. India reached the target with one ball to spare and secured a victory of 2 wickets.
Minnu Mani was the pick of the Indian bowlers, claiming the key wickets of Rachel Trenaman, Anika Learoyd, and Amy Edgar. Saima Thakor also impressed with two wickets. Despite the bowling efforts, Australia A posted a competitive total of 265 runs.
In response, India A chased down the target with crucial contributions from Yastika Bhatia (66), captain Radha Yadav (60), and Tanuja Kanwar (50). The winning run came off the bat of Prema Rawat in the final over. Minnu, however, had a disappointing outing with the bat, scoring just 3 runs.
Earlier, in the first match against Australia A, Minnu Mani bagged two wickets for 38 in her 10 overs, maintaining an economy rate of just 3.80— the best among Indian bowlers. Her effort, combined with a three-wicket haul from skipper Radha Yadav, helped India A restrict the hosts to 214 runs, which they chased down comfortably in 42 overs.
With five wickets across two matches and one game still to go in the ODI series, Minnu currently stands as India's leading wicket-taker in the series. The third match will be played in the same venue at Brisbane on August 17.