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ICC WOMEN'S WORLD T20November 15, 2018Smriti MandhanaGeorgetown, Guyana India - 145/6, Ireland - 93/8 Q. You've been one of the exciting players in Indian and world cricket. You've scored a hundred before and a lot of responsibility to you. How do you find yourself coming out here and opening the batting at the Providence Stadium? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, it's quite exciting playing in this World Cup, and yeah, I was looking forward to the first match before New Zealand. You know, opening in the World Cup, that's always a real dream for a player, and the first two matches didn't go the way I thought it would, and today I was hitting the ball well but unfortunately got out. So not really capitalised the strengths which I've got. Definitely I'll be working on that in the next match. Q. I know this wasn't a match to try to play the ball around the ground. With the first powerplay, you've got the strength of stroke play. Why not go over the top? SMRITI MANDHANA: Today? Did I go on -- Q. I missed the first part today, so I mean the other matches. It was coming on nicely -- SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, in the first match I got out, pulled in the air too deep in the wicket, so that was a -- not good short. Last match we were just chasing 120, so just wanted to just take some time and bat because I was going all out on the ball, and these are different kind of wickets, so he just told me to take some time for the last match, and today I don't think that was the mindset. I was playing according to the merit of the world. When they said it has to be lofted, I lofted it today. Q. Can I ask you to comment on the state of Mithali Raj's injury? SMRITI MANDHANA: I'm not sure. I'll have to speak with the physio yet. Q. What is your assessment of the pitch today? It seemed to be gripping a little in the morning. SMRITI MANDHANA: Yeah, it rained quite a bit yesterday and even today morning, so it was a bit damp first two, three overs, but it wasn't that you were not able to play the shorts. If you got time and saw the ball, I think it was a wicket where you can play your shorts. Q. The Ireland players have received a lot of support from the cricketing world for the performance they've put in, considering they're probably one of the last teams to go professional. What's your assessment of their showing in the tournament so far? SMRITI MANDHANA: Yes, I think they have been good. Some of their players also played for Big Bash, and that's really a good experience to be in, and yeah, today also they were really good with the ball. Yeah, I think the time I saw them last time, they have been a lot of improvement in them as players, and they are a well improved side from what I saw last year. Q. And considering the slightly slow outfield and the sticky wicket, do you think 142 was a par score, or were you expecting a little more? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, definitely we were looking at 165 to 170. I didn't think that 140 was good enough because in T20s you can't keep thinking about wicket and outfield because it's such a fast game that -- and we have 10 wickets to play. So I think we were aiming at 165 to 170, but unfortunately we could not do that. Q. You and Mithali have the most successful partnerships for India with two centuries and five half centuries in T20 formats. What are your thoughts on batting with Mithali? Is she like a mentor to you? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, it's fun batting with her, but I think both have different mindsets to go about their game, and we just discussed about the wicket and the bowlers, and yeah, we just give enough freedom to play each other -- like whatever game they have, and yeah, it's it. Q. Prior to this match you had mentioned your form. You didn't manage to get a lot of runs, but you've spent some time on the wicket, and the entire top 4 of India has found some form heading into the semifinals. Do you see this as a potential warning to the other teams that India is in form and we're going to blow it away? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, I think the first match was enough warning for everyone. Everyone has been in good form the last seven, eight months, so coming into the World T20, we all were really confident as a batting unit. So yeah, I think if our top 4 bat through the 20 overs, I think we will always be putting a good total up. Q. You guys are now in the semifinals, and the last game is against Australia. What will the mindset be of the team going in to play a team that's been so dominant? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, I think we will be looking at it as a match only and not just like -- we need to be on the top of the table of this group. That's what our mindset will be, and to go all out. Before coming into the World Cup, Ramesh had told us that you have to dominate each and every match, so that is the only mindset which we had the last three matches, and I don't think it will change in the next match. The only mindset will be dominate, be aggressive, be yourself. That's it. Q. And in terms of being able to dominate an opposition, how much does a team take away from a side like Australia that has sort of set the bar with that sort of mindset? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, I think Ramesh has told us, talked us through that it's not always you should be thinking about the opposition is dominating, is aggressive. That really keeps us under pressure. We have to think that we are dominating, we are aggressive enough to defeat them. That is only the mindset which we have, because I don't think it is any -- it is going to help us thinking about what they do, how they dominated, how they play their cricket, because at the end we have to go out there, bat and bowl and field. Q. So would you say that today's performance was dominant? SMRITI MANDHANA: The first two matches I definitely felt we were good, but today I felt batting could have been better. But bowling and fielding I think we are really good, and we dominated the opposition. Q. Six months ago with the Asia Cup, a lot of people said that India might not make the semifinals. Making the semifinals, how much does that mean to the team? SMRITI MANDHANA: Well, it means a lot because after the Asia Cup final, a lot of things happened back home. Everyone had actually thought that we wouldn't even make it to the semifinals because we did not even win the Asia Cup. So but I guess everyone was motivated enough after the Asia Cup that this time, this is the time everyone will be watching, and we have to prove our point because in 2017 we qualified for the final, but only it cannot happen just once. We are such a good team, we have such good youngsters that we need to step up our game every match, and this World Cup was -- we all really needed the mind to go to the semifinals, and all 15 of us actually went back after Asia Cup, worked hard on whatever they felt we lacked in the team, and Ramesh has also been brilliant the last three to four months. Q. Arundhati Reddy was bowling the first two games, now you bring the experience. Is she injured at all or is she fit to play? SMRITI MANDHANA: Reddy? Q. Yeah. SMRITI MANDHANA: No, I think we just gave her a rest for today's match, and we just wanted to see how Mansi bowls, and that's it. I don't think there's anything to worry about. Q. There was a change in the lineup to bring in the experience. It worked well for the team. SMRITI MANDHANA: Yeah, it did work well for the team. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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