Radha Yadav's valiant fight with the bat, ball and on the field went in vain as New Zealand outclassed India in the second ODI to level the three-match series on Sunday, October 27. The left-arm spinner Radha slammed 48 after picking up four wickets. However, India went down by 76 runs.
The hosts, who won the first game by 59 runs, kept losing wickets at regular intervals. The top three were removed cheaply with India only on 26. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur looked to put up a fight but she was also caught in the deep at mid-wicket off her counterpart Sophie Devine for 24. While reaching 100, the Women in Blue had lost six wickets and two more at 108.
But then came a fightback from the lower-order batters Radha Yadav and Saima Thakor. The duo put up a huge 70-run stand for the ninth wicket. This became the third-highest stand for the ninth wicket in the world. The highest stand for this wicket stands at 77, which belongs to Ash Gardner and Kim Garth. The second-highest stand is between Isa Guha and Lynsey Askew who stitched a stand of 73.
Radha was the star for India. She had taken four wickets and troubled the New Zealand batters the most. She was brilliant on the field too, having taken three catches, two of which were spectacular ones.
After opting to bat first, the newly-crowned T20 World Champions put up 259 despite being in a spot of bother at 139/4 after 31.3 overs. The Indian spinners starred as they got three of the first four wickets to fall with one being a run-out. But captain Sophie Devine brought the White Ferns back. Walking in at No.4, she held one end up brilliantly and kept the scoring rate going. Devine made 79 from 86 deliveries and struck seven fours and a six in her knock. Maddy Green also provided the much-needed impetus at the fag end of the innings as she made 42.
New Zealand have now levelled the series at 1-1. The two teams will have a crack at each other once again on October 29 with the series on the line.
