'No one drops catches on purpose': Shafali plays down costly dropped catches
Shafali Verma, right, celebrates the wicket of Netherlands Sterre Kalis during the Women's T20 World Cup cricket match in Leeds, England, Wednesday, June 17, 2026
Shafali Verma, right, celebrates the wicket of Netherlands Sterre Kalis during the Women's T20 World Cup cricket match in Leeds, England, Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP) Rohit Sharma opens up on India winning Women's World Cup, & why it was special India opener Shafali Verma believes India should keep things simple when they face Australia in a must-win match in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026.Sunday's matches will decide which teams from Group A reach the semi-finals. South Africa, on six points, will face Bangladesh, who have four points. India, also on six points, will then take on unbeaten Australia, who have eight points.If South Africa beat Bangladesh, India will need to defeat Australia to qualify for the semi-finals. Australia, however, can still go through even if they lose because they already have eight points and a much better net run rate.Speaking on JioStar, Shafali said India have the confidence to beat Australia after winning a T20I series there before the World Cup."Everyone knows Australia are a world-class team.
But it's not like we haven't beaten them before. We recently beat them in a T20 series in Australia, and that gives us confidence," she said.India had beaten Australia 2-1 in the three-match series, and Shafali believes that knowing the opposition well will help."We have been playing against them for years now. We know their bowlers, their strengths, and their plans.So, we will keep things straightforward, which is important, and back our own strengths. The more you overthink, the harder it gets."The opener, who has scored two fifties in her last three innings, said she changed her mindset after the match against Pakistan."A lot of things have improved in my batting. Before the Pakistan match, I was overthinking. I was planning too much, how I would play the first ball, what shot I would play off the second ball," she said."But after that game, I realised that I don't need to complicate things. I just need to keep it simple. When I bat, I watch the ball and react.
I don't plan too far ahead. That has helped me score runs more freely."Apart from batting, Shafali has also contributed with the ball. She has bowled with the new ball in recent matches, returning figures of 1 for 22 against South Africa, including the wicket of Tazmin Brits, after taking 3 for 20 against the Netherlands.She said captain Harmanpreet Kaur has given her a clear role."Harman di has kept my role very clear. She told me that I will have to bowl in the powerplay. So, I work on that in the nets as well. I bowl with the new ball, focus on hitting the right areas, and try to keep the ball around the stumps."As an opener, I know that if you bowl outside the stumps, you give the batter room to score. So, I always try to bowl according to what I would expect as an opener, what line and length would trouble me. I bowl keeping that in mind; tight lines, stump-to-stump, and making the batter work for runs," she said.India's fielding has come under scrutiny after several dropped catches during the tournament, but Shafali backed her teammates."Everyone is thinking of giving their 100 per cent.
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