Image Credit- BCCI
In women’s T20Is, Renuka Singh has taken 38 wickets at
an average of 21.13. Of all the fast bowlers from Full-Member sides, only
Arlene Kelly of Ireland has taken more wickets since her debut in October 2021.
Pooja Vastrakar, who has taken 21 wickets at 24.80 throughout this time, is
also in the top ten.
In the one-off Test match against England last week,
Renuka and Vastrakar, who bowled quickly for India, took a combined six
wickets. Troy Cooley, the bowling instructor, has commended their work ethic
and acknowledged their expansion of skill sets.
“[Renuka] is definitely improving every time I
see her,” Cooley said after India’s training session at the Wankhede
Stadium on Tuesday. “She is coming from a couple of injuries and she has
worked extremely hard to not only develop fitness but also to develop her
skills. You are starting to see rewards now of all that hard work. Not only
does she swing the ball back in naturally. She has now got the ball that
straightens and leaves the right-handers.”
Due to a stress injury, Renuka has not been able to
play since the conclusion of WPL 2023. Her first international matches since
her return were the T20Is against England earlier this month, and she looked
good with the new ball. She used the bowling crease well to create angles that
taxed the hitters, dismissing England’s opener Sophia Dunkley three times in
the T20Is and once in the first innings of the Test.
“It is great to see her using the angles,”
Cooley said. “I really like the way she is putting together the sequence
of deliveries and the number of deliveries she has got in option. Her toolbox
is quite big now and [she] is definitely using those tools in a strategic and
tactical way.”
Vastrakar, who debuted internationally in 2018, had a
career plagued by injuries in the beginning. However, she has been an essential
part of India’s white-ball teams for the past few years. This year, she was
listed as a non-traveling reserve for the Asian Games, but she managed to make
the squad when Anjali Sarvani unexpectedly showed up the night before the
tournament began. She then went on to assist India win the gold medal in the
final with a four-for.
“She had a little bit of a sore knee and she came
back through that nicely,” Cooley said. “Through rehab she dedicated
herself to improve her run-up and get the most out of it. She has done a
marvellous job there. Now she is more balanced at the crease.
“You can see the natural tendency now to get into
the stumps and challenge those batters. She has got her run-up sorted which is
great from a bowling coach [persepective] here. She has got enough pace and
variations to be a good red-ball bowler.”