Missing from big-hitting Shafali Verma’s arsenal: Ones and twos

Shafali had an excellent inaugural WPL, where she ended up scoring 252 runs with a strike rate of 185.29, the best in the tournament. Since the WPL, the Indian opener has played eight T20 matches, scoring 175 at 118.24, which is way less than her career strike rate of 130.33.

6️⃣4️⃣6️⃣ @TheShafaliVerma is dealing in boundaries here in Mumbai 😎🎆

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— Women's Premier League (WPL) (@wplt20) March 5, 2023

In the first T20 against England, Shafali scored a 42-ball 52. Thirty-six of those runs were in the boundaries but the remaining 16 took 33 balls.

Delhi Capitals coach Jonathan Batty, while comparing Shafali’s approach to the other explosive openers like Danielle Wyatt, Alyssa Healy and Deandra Dottin, says the Indian batter needs to understand that scoring 40s and 50s can only have an impact but it is the 80s and 100s that will win a game. Shafali is still 19 but has been playing for four years and in her 63 T20 games, she is yet to cross the 80-run mark.

“If you look at the very best batters in the world. They are the ones who are excellent in the powerplay and will maximise the two fielders’ outside the 30 yards. But once the restriction is lifted, you obviously have to keep the scoreboard moving in that middle over. That’s the difference between a good batter making a good 40 or 50 to a great who is scoring match-winning 80s or even a hundred. It is the 80s and 100s which really takes the game away from the opposition,” Batty told The Indian Express.

“You have to remember Shafali is still so young still. She is learning all the time. By forcing her to change her game, we don’t want to lose her exciting strokeplay because that’s her super strength. But she will have to make those little adjustments in her game because the more runs she will score, the higher the chances for her team to win the match,” he said.

Delhi Capitals skipper Meg Lanning was awestruck after watching Shafali Verma’s power-hitting from the other end in the first season and hailed her as one of the best she had ever seen.

Batty feels spending more time with Meg Lanning will help Shafali evolve and mature.

“What I have seen in the WPL last year is that Shafali could go and become one of the best players in international cricket,” he said.

“It was really fascinating to watch her and Meg Lanning bat together. Shafali got a little bit of Meg in her batting and Meg got a bit of Shafali in her batting. They complemented each other beautifully.

“Someone like Meg has played for so long and has done so much, if Shafali can learn a little bit from her, pick up a few things from her experience, she benefitted massively from it. It was great to see the way Shafali played against England the other night. Her game will keep on moving forward,” he said.

Batty has had extensive coaching experience when it comes to women’s cricket. He coached Oval Invincibles to the title at the women’s Hundred in 2021 and 2022, and has also been head coach at Melbourne Stars in the WBBL and the Surrey women’s side.

“I think the way women’s cricket is moving, players are developing quickly. There are a lot of incredibly talented players coming through and Shafali is certainly one of them.

“Around the World, we now see more and more complete players coming through. The power element that was traditionally missing from the women’s game is not the case anymore. Now we can see many more players who can hit a ball out of the ground, can hit sixes at will,” he said.

When asked about what Shafali should do to improve her game, Batty said: “When you are facing the top bowlers, those bowlers who are going to bowl good spells, then you can’t take on the attack right away. Balancing it out by rotating the strike is the way to deal while facing a quality spell. Scoring ones and twos and keeping the scoreboard ticking is the key.”