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AUSW won by 5 wickets

3:51 PM IST & 9:21 PM Local Time: That’s it! Another dominant run chase from Australia in this series. They seal the contest by 5 wickets with a clinical batting display. With this win, Australia take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ODI series. 

Earlier in the day, India opted to bat first after winning the toss, with openers Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana providing a cracking start for the Women in Blue. Australia’s fielding was uncharacteristically untidy during the first Powerplay, handing the visitors a few lifelines by shelling some tough chances. However, the 78-run opening stand was eventually broken in the 17th over when Mandhana gifted her wicket for 31.

From a comfortable position, India suffered a middle-order collapse to stumble to 130/5, despite the surface being conducive for batting. Most of the batters were guilty of throwing their wickets away, leaving skipper Harmanpreet Kaur as the lone warrior with a gritty 54 to steer India toward a competitive score. Handy cameos from Kashvee Gautam (25), Richa Ghosh (22), and Kranti Gaud (19) eventually propelled India Women to 251/9 at the close of their 50 overs. 

In reply, Australia’s chase stuttered early as they lost skipper Alyssa Healy for just 6 in the 5th over. However, Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll stabilized the innings with a massive 119-run second-wicket partnership that effectively took the game away from the Indians. The duo kept the scoreboard ticking over with ease, ruthlessly punishing any loose deliveries that came their way. 

Litchfield played her natural game throughout but fell against the run of play for a well-made 80, narrowly missing out on a century. At the other end, Georgia Voll remained firm, stitching together an 82-run stand with Beth Mooney for the 3rd wicket. Voll survived a scare on 99 when Richa Ghosh put down a chance, allowing her to scamper for the run that brought up her second ODI hundred before departing for 101.

With the result all but a formality, Annabel Sutherland looked to finish the chase in aggressive fashion but holed out for a brisk 10. Ash Gardner then took charge to hit the winning runs, remaining unbeaten on 19 to officially steer her side across the finish line. Australia completed a clinical run-chase to wrap up the victory by 5 wickets, reaching the target with a massive 83 balls to spare. Stay tuned for the Post-Match Presentation!

Player of the Match: Georgia Voll

Georgia Voll (Player of the Match): “[What are you most pleased about?] It was nice to get over the line. I thought Pheebs {Phoebe Litchfield) was outstanding at the other end. It made my job easier. We kept the momentum going and happy to get the win.

[On batting with Litchfield] We keep things pretty simple to be honest. She was smashing at the other end when I was getting in. As I started getting the feel of it, I got going. We love batting together.

[On batting at number 3] I love batting anywhere to be honest. Any chance you get to play for Australia, you take it. I love playing anywhere."

Harmanpreet Kaur (India Women Captain): “[Thoughts on the game] Definitely, we didn’t bat well today. As a group, we decided let’s bat first and put 300+ on the board. Today’s pitch was better than the other one. We kept losing wickets and fell short of runs.

[What pleased you tonight] We didn’t play good cricket. But there were lots of positives. Girls are coming and performing. That’s good to see and that’s what you have to do while playing international cricket.

[Things to do before the third ODI] As I mentioned, no matter whether we are batting first or second, we have to bat really well. Whenever we bat well, we are in a good situation. In the last two games, we didn’t bat well and it cost us. It’s about batting well and batting deep on Sunday."

Alyssa Healy (Australia Women Captain): "Really pumped with that result. Like I said the other night, I was static with the way we went about the chase the other night and we did it again tonight. Pretty pleased with that. 

(On the bowling innings) It was one of those innings actually. We felt that they were well short of that par score. It was a bit frustrating for us as well as we thought we could've got them all out a bit earlier. To keep them to 250 in that kind of a wicket, it was an outstanding effort from our group. In the halfway mark, it was just to get the job done for us. 

(On the partnership between Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll) Sometimes it's better to get out of the way and let the young kids do the job for the team. That's the future of this Australian cricket. Especially Phoebe with the way she approached her innings at the start was just outstanding.   

(Are Australia playing a particular brand of cricket?) Yeah, we will just keep focusing on the things we do best. We are doing the little things right which is great. Nothing changes for Sunday.

A dominant display from Australia Women as they continue to assert their authority in this series! Skipper Alyssa Healy will be immensely proud of her side's clinical execution, especially as she leads them through her final international series before hanging up her boots. This victory puts Australia 2 points clear of India in the multi-format standings, giving them a significant edge heading into the business end of the tour. We’ll be back with you on Sunday for the third and final ODI, where the visitors will be desperate to salvage a result from this series. 

For now, this is Pritam Dey signing off on behalf of my co-commentator Akshay Bhide who, along with scorer/analyst Yogesh Kumar & statistician Aman brought all the updates of this clash. Stay tuned for more cricketing action from around the world. BYE BYE👋