India vs Australia Live Score, Women’s World Cup 2025: Rattled IND consider tactical shift for key clash against AUS
The three-wicket loss to South Africa on Thursday exposed the limitations of India’s five-bowler strategy. Without a sixth option, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur was forced to bowl her part-time off-spin, but when the Proteas went after the pacers in the death overs, India had no answers.
Kranti Gaud and Amanjot Kaur leaked 30 runs in the 47th and 49th overs, allowing South Africa to chase down a 252-run target.
India’s current attack includes two right-arm pacers (Gaud, Amanjot), two off-spinners (Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana), and a left-arm spinner (Sree Charani). Against Australia’s powerful batting unit, that one-dimensional mix could prove costly again.
Need for a genuine sixth bowler
India desperately need a reliable sixth option. Harmanpreet’s occasional off-spin won’t trouble a line-up stacked with hitters like Alyssa Healy, Ashleigh Gardner, and Ellyse Perry. But choosing the right addition won’t be straightforward.
Bowling reserve and team balance
Given that South Africa’s Nadine de Klerk admitted her team targeted India’s pacers while spinners extracted turn, India might prefer to bring in an additional spinner.
Radha Yadav, the experienced left-arm spinner who can also bat down the order, is an obvious candidate. She could replace Rana, but Australia have two left-handers — Beth Mooney and Phoebe Litchfield — who prefer facing left-arm spin.
Alternatively, India could draft pacer Arundhati Reddy for Amanjot Kaur, though that would weaken the lower-order batting — an area that has often rescued India.
Replacing Harleen Deol with Yadav is another option, but that would further deplete an already inconsistent top order.
Worries at the top
India’s top-order woes have become a pattern in this tournament. They barely survived collapses against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, before completely folding versus South Africa. Australia’s potent attack will be even less forgiving.
Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Jemimah Rodrigues must lead the charge. Mandhana, in particular, needs to rediscover her pre-World Cup touch — when she amassed 928 runs in 14 innings at an average of 66.
Her current form — just 54 runs in three matches — has hurt India’s starts. Yet, there’s hope: Mandhana enjoys batting against Australia, with 916 runs at an average of 48.21 and four centuries in ODIs.
India will hope their vice-captain rediscovers her rhythm to keep the team afloat before testing fixtures against England and New Zealand.
Teams
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Uma Chetry, Renuka Singh Thakur, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Sree Charani, Radha Yadav, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud.
Australia: Alyssa Healy (c), Darcie Brown, Ash Gardner, Kim Garth, Heather Graham, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham.
