Former Indian cricketer Anjum Chopra questioned a leading news publication that attributed ex-skipper Mithali Raj for the team’s recent results against Australia after India’s impressive triumph against the world’s number one Test side on Sunday.
Harmanpreet Kaur-led Indian side defeated the heavyweights Australians by eight wickets in a one-off Test match at the Wankhede Stadium. The victory was the team’s second win in a row in test cricket, following a 347-run thrashing win over the England team in Navi Mumbai.
Moments after India Women’s team opener Smriti Mandhana hit the winning runs against Australia, former Indian captain Mithali Raj took to her X and praised Harmanpreet Kaur and co. for their commanding and dominating performance over the Australians.
Raj congratulated the Indian team for defeating Australia for the first time in Tests and also praised bowlers Sneh Rana and Pooja Vastrakar for their efforts. A prominent news publication reshared the post of Mithali Raj and credited the former cricketer for “paving the way” for India’s historic win against Australia.
Mithali Raj’s former teammate Anjum Raj noticed the tweet and requested the publication to clarify their admiration for the former Indian captain. Raj reacted with a single word:
How? 😊
— Anjum Chopra (@chopraanjum) December 24, 2023
“How?”
On the final day, India showed their best with both the ball and the bat to thwart a powerful Australian comeback, first instigating a breakdown in the visitors’ ranks to take the remaining five wickets for 28 and then easily chasing down a modest goal of 75 to seal an eight-wicket triumph.
The Indian women’s cricket team set a new record with their first-ever win against Australia in women’s Test cricket history. India have four losses and six draws against Australia in the previous ten official Test matches. This was the first women’s Test match between the two sides in India since 1984, where the Harmanpreet side dominated the Australians to win their 1st test.
With the Indian women’s team playing at home for the first time in over a decade, Team India’s clinical performance against Australia and England in the two home Tests played on different surfaces here at the Wankhede Stadium and the DY Patil Stadium was similar.
Team India will now meet Australia Women in a three-match One-Day International series in Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium from December 28 to January 2. Following the series, The two teams will return to the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on January 5 for three T20I matches to round out their month-long home season.