Veteran wicketkeeper Sushma Verma believes Smriti Mandhana’s form should not be a matter of concern for India in the Women’s World Cup. Smriti Mandhana entered the tournament after delivering back-to-back hit performances and scoring 300 runs in the India vs Australia ODI series, one of which was the fastest by an Indian in ODI history, where Australia won the series by 2-1, but Mandhana’s performance became the talk of the town.

So far, Mandhana has struggled to score in the Women's ODI World Cup; it has only been two matches, and it is too early to judge, considering how good a batter Mandhana is. She has scored 31 runs at an average of 15.50 and a strike rate of 73.80. Verma, who has represented India in one Test, 43 ODIs, and 19 T20Is, emphasised that even if Smriti Mandhana doesn’t deliver, the team has enough firepower in players like Jemimah Rodrigues and Harmanpreet Kaur to step up and make an impact.

Smriti Mandhana’s poor form ‘blessing in disguise’ for the middle order

“That’s a very important point. If we want to win the World Cup, then if, just imagine, Smriti fails, who are the other players capable of scoring big like her, right? Yes, that’s a bit of a concern for the team — but I wouldn’t call it a major concern, because everyone is in good shape, and I think everyone is capable," said Sushma Verma, JioStar expert for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, while responding to India Today's query during a Media Day. “If you look at Jemimah, she can also play that kind of innings — she’s got the ability to do so. Harman is also capable, right? So it’s just that if Smriti doesn’t score runs — if the runs aren’t coming off her bat, she hasn’t quite performed to the level or the benchmark she’s set for herself, or what we’re used to seeing from her, then it’s not a big worry. These things happen — in big tournaments, there are always ups and downs."

Verma, who last represented India in 2021, believes Mandhana’s lean patch could actually serve as an opportunity for others to take responsibility and contribute significantly.

“The important thing is that in those moments, it becomes an opportunity for the others to step up and score big. Because it’s quite rare otherwise, generally, the top order always dominates the run charts. The openers naturally get to face more balls, while the middle order gets fewer opportunities. So in that sense, I think it’s a bit of a blessing in disguise for the others — they need to step up on those occasions," Verma added.

Currently placed third in the table, India will next face Laura Wolvaardt’s South Africa on Thursday, October 9, at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam.