India women’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur’s (2/23) timely arrival with the ball proved crucial for the side as they evaded a major challenge in the one-off Test against Australia on Saturday. Despite India’s various bowling attempts, the resilient Australian side efficiently erased the hosts’ 187-run lead in the first innings; Kaur, utilizing her “golden arm,” made an impact in the third session by dismissing Tahlia McGrath (73 from 177 balls, 10 fours) and the dangerous Alyssa Healy (32) after a sudden burst of aggression, limiting Australia’s lead to 46 runs by stumps on the third day.
The encounter between Kaur and Healy was not devoid of drama. Tensions flared amid the match when, on the ball just before the dismissal of the Australian captain, Kaur, to run Healy out, unleashed a sharp return throw at the Aussie. The throw was barely towards the stump, though; the ball was high and came swiftly towards Healy herself, and in an evasive move, the Australian deflected it towards the ropes. Kaur appealed for obstructing the field, a plea rejected by on-field umpires Anil Chaudhary and N Janani.
On the subsequent delivery, Kaur successfully had Healy declared leg-before while attempting to execute a sweep shot.
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Harmanpreet Kaur is known for expressing her emotions openly, and during an ODI series against Bangladesh earlier this year, she did not hold back her displeasure with the umpiring decisions. Following her dismissal in one of the matches, Harmanpreet had exhibited her frustration by smashing the stumps with her bat and later described the umpiring as “pathetic” during the post-match presentation.
During the customary end-of-series photographs with players from both teams, Harmanpreet reportedly shouted, “bring the umpires too,” implying that they were part of the Bangladesh team.
For her actions, Harmanpreet received three demerit points for “showing dissent at an umpiring decision” and an additional point for “public criticism” of match officials. She also missed the opening stages of India’s Asian Games campaign as a result, with Smriti Mandhana stepping in as interim captain in Hangzhou.
Australia are leading by 46 runs with five wickets in their hands as the one-off Test moves to day 4.
