2nd T20I: Shafali looks to get big score as Indian women aim to seal series vs Bangladesh

supremely talented Shafali Verma would like to make an impact with willow after a poor start in lung opener as Indian women aim to clinch three-match T20 International series against Bangladesh with ar dominant performance in second game here on Tuesday.

India coasted to an easy seven-wicket victory in opening match on Sunday with skipper Harmanpreet Kaur blazing her way to an unbeaten 35-ball 54 and Smriti Mandhana looking equally dangerous during her short but significant kck of 38.

slow bowlers were also on target as two debutants Anusha Bareddy and Minnu Mani gave a good account of mselves under senior off-spinner Deepti Sharma.

However, what stuck out like a sore thumb was Shafali's three-ball duck and once again distinct lack of footwork was evident against medium pacer Marufa Akter.

young Haryana woman is one of biggest batting talents in country and has already played 57 T20I games even before completing her 20th birthday.

While she could be breathtaking when on song, her consistency has been an issue with only one score of 50-plus in last 10 games in shortest version.

Her last half-century in T20Is came last year against Australian women during a home series and since n had a quiet World Cup in South Africa.

re are still a few technical issues which one expects chief coach Amol Muzumdar would address in coming days.

Bangladesh are such opponents which will give Shafali a good chance to regain some form and tch up a big score at top of order.

Harmanpreet's unit has shown gulf in cricketing standards between two teams and it will be a huge upset if Bangladesh win on Tuesday and restore parity in series.

difference in quality between two teams was re to be seen when Bangladesh batted, as only batter to at least score at run-a-ball strike-rate was Shorna Akter, who struck two sixes in her 28-ball-28 that took home team past 100-run mark.

What has worked to India's advant is fact that all of Bangladesh's top seven batters are right-handers and that has allowed Indian skipper to stick to one particular line on a Sher-e-Bangla track where ball at times stops before coming onto bat.

Harmanpreet's clever ploy of loading off-side cordon with five fielders worked wonderfully well as Bangladeshi batters were often seen trying to fetch deliveries pitched on imaginary fourth or fifth off-stump and hit m through vacant on-side.

But Deepti, Anusha and Minu did maintain a tight line, which didn't allow m to maeuvre much.

It was a good toss to win for Harmanpreet during opening game and if spin of coin goes in her favour once again, she might see how well batting unit performs while trying to set a target.

This will also give Shafali a chance to express herself freely in Mandhana and Harmanpreet's company and give glimpse of a player that everyone wants to pay to watch.

Teams (From): India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma, Shefali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Harleen Deol, Devika Vaidya, Uma Chhetri (wk), Amanjot Kaur, S Meghna, Pooja Vastrakar, Meghna Singh, Anjali Sarwani , Monika Patel, Rashi Kajia, Anusha Bareddi, Minnu Mani.

Bangladesh: Nigar Sultana (c/w), Shamima Sultana, Murshida Khatun, Sobhana Mostary, Shorna Akter, Ritu Moni, Nahida Akter, Fahima Khatun, Rabeya Khan, Shanjida Akter, Salma Khatun, Marufa Akter, Dilara Akter, Disha Biswas, Sultana Khatun, Shathi Rani.

Match Starts: 1:30 pm IST.