Indian women's cricket team coach Tushar Arothe was shocked when Jhulan Goswami requested him to drop her after just two games during the World Cup in England where the team lost to the hosts in the final
Jhulan Goswami celebrates the wicket of Fran Wilson during the final vs England in London on July 23. Pic/Getty Images
Indian women's cricket team coach Tushar Arothe was shocked when Jhulan Goswami requested him to drop her after just two games during the World Cup in England where the team lost to the hosts in the final.
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Jhulan, who went wicket-less in the first two matches against England and West Indies giving away 39 and 37 runs respectively, told Arothe to drop her after the West Indies match which India won by seven wickets. She revealed this at a felicitation function in Kolkata yesterday.
Tushar Arothe
Shocked but happy
"I was shocked but happy as well because she was thinking about the team… all credit to her. She is a senior member and she knows what she was saying, but it was difficult for me to take such a decision," Arothe told mid-day from Vadodara yesterday.
India skipper Mithali Raj's reaction was also the same opinion and both decided not to drop her. "Mithali's reaction was also the same. She said, 'how can Jhulan react like this, I am not going to drop her in any case'. India needed her experience and both Mithali and I decided to support her and backed her ability to make a strong comeback. Since our third match was against Pakistan, I asked her to think more positively. I was pretty sure she would do well in the next game," added Arothe.
Jhulan could get only wicket against Pakistan in her five overs, but she conceded only 12 runs. The Bengal-born pacer ended up claiming 12 wickets in the tournament, which included three for 23 against England in the final.
Worked really hard
"It was difficult task to convince Jhulan initially, but I told her to give work hard for the next four to five days. I know her mentality and she worked really hard. During the first two games Jhulan was not hitting the right length gave runs. But later on, we both worked on it and she got the desired result."
"A day before the final against England at Lord's, Jhulan bowled for about 25 minutes in the nets at the Nursery End of Lord's. She then said that she wanted to bowl on one stump in the main ground where final was to be played. As there is a slight slope on the pitch, she bowled for an hour from both ends," recalled Arothe.
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