They added, ‘You’re the sort of player who can turn the tide of the game at any time, so that’s why we believe in you. That is the kind of assistance and backup I have been given at RCB.” Richa Ghosh informed Cricbuzz that her only goal for the current Women’s Premier League 2024 is to return that enormous confidence before departing for the Delhi leg.
With a postseason berth in sight, the Sunday chase against Delhi Capitals looked to be the most appropriate opportunity for the 20-year-old to fulfil her promise, if her brief appearances earlier in the competition weren’t making the proper sounds. Alright, nearly.
Arriving somewhat ahead of her position as a finisher, Ghosh joined the 182-run chase after RCB had lost both of its set batsmen in an 80-run partnership. Don’t worry, Ghosh disclosed that she has been actively working on it at the RCB setup. With two fresh hitters in the middle of the eight remaining overs, the team needed to score 89 runs. Sophie Devine used a lucky break to propel the chase ahead for a little while, but Ghosh quickly grabbed control. She made use of her hand speed, field manipulation skills and ability to create gaps to almost pull off the robbery for RCB.
She had just found her rhythm in Arundhati Reddy’s last over, the 16th of the chase, after acquiring a feel for the pitch. The medium-paced player got off to a legside freebie first up and was well punished by Ghosh, who flicked it fine. The RCB hitter came forward, stretched her arms, and lofted the ball cleanly over deep cover, holding the stance for the photographers as she finished the over with a slot ball outside off. Ellyse Perry, who was watching the replay from the dugout, said, “That’s insane.”
Ghosh dropped to one knee and lifted-cum-scooped the off-cutter, slow, on-good-length shot right outside off for a one-bounce four from Kapp. When the two came together for another brief conversation, neither Lanning nor Kapp found the idea very appreciative. Another short, wide off-cutter that was collected by a diving cover-point despite the batter’s strong cut.
As Ghosh continued to hold the strike at the beginning of the last over, from which RCB needed 17, Lanning pitched the ball to her go-to bowler, Jess Jonassen, who had made several similar deliveries for Australia. Ghosh’s eyes brightened up as he cleared the front leg and smoked it straight over the bowler’s head and into the sightscreen, except that Jonassen delivered the first one right in the slot. After a little while, it was 11 off 4, and Disha Kasat, in her maiden match of the year, shown remarkable awareness to give up her wicket and get a diamond duck while searching for an imaginary second to only be able to pass the strike to Ghosh.
Ghosh took a deep breath and looked around the pitch as she ran as hard as she could, panting and crouched down before confronting the last ball. The larger border was on the legside. Eight needed off of two, and in her striking arc, the Australian spinner again delivered one. But Ghosh gave the full delivery enough force, and the slogsweep cleared a leaping Jemimah Rodrigues at deep midwicket. Ghosh was so focused on winning that she didn’t even realise she had hit a 28-ball fifty.
One for the WPL’s inaugural Super Over and two to win. In the lead-up to the important last ball, Ghosh reexamined the pitch as Lanning deliberated with Kapp and Jonassen. It was discussed whether to pull in the boundary-riders a little bit to halt the two, as Jonassen would later disclose. The bowler decided on the yorker length because he believed that the dangerous hitter would always go for the fence. The execution was also flawless. Ghosh retreated to cut it to backward point, where Shafali Verma collected neatly on the bounce and hit a crisp throw to the non-striker’s end, only for Jonassen to catch the half-centurion weeping a moment later.
“My role at RCB is to be on if we lose a wicket after a good partnership,” Ghosh had previously stated to Cricbuzz. “I’ve also been preparing for scenarios in which I have to enter the pitch earlier than normal because we lose early wickets. or if we don’t win after a predetermined alliance. Even while practicing in the nets with the coaches, I work on a few situations or two to three simulations in one session. Regarding how to manage that specific scenario for the first ten balls that are inserted, and how to proceed from there.
“I’ve spent a lot of time here working with RX [Muralidhar, RCB hitting coach] sir to develop my innings over after over. For example, how to make up for an over or two if there are too many dots building up in the following round.
If I am down to only the final fifteen balls, I know what I have to do and what I can accomplish. I’m in my element there. I know I have to hit if I’m only receiving 15 balls because, clearly, there’s no purpose in playing for singles or defending there. Yes, I do need to practise for other scenarios in which I receive more points than I often do for finishing. I have to practise [ending those games] since those opportunities are not often’, the woman continued.
That being the case, Sunday’s so-close-but-still-far episode hurt far too much. When Ghosh saw she hadn’t established herself, she sat by the crease in complete despair. The umpire, N Janani, gave her the first comforting pat before Jemimah Rodrigues, closely followed by Lanning, raced to see how she was doing as she left the winning-team huddle. The game identifies itself. Jonassen, Kapp, and others stopped over for a little chat. Moments after, Shikha Pandey helped Ghosh get back up on her feet, with players from the Delhi Capitals continuing to offer their condolences. In an attempt to lift Ghosh’s spirits, Verma, who caused her closest friend and teammate in the U19 World Cup to lose heartfully with a stinging toss from midwicket, threw her arm around her comrade. Her RCB captain, Smriti Mandhana, went through the motions and gave her a comforting embrace.
Shreyanka Patil was at the opposite end of the distraught spectrum, wiping away her emotions as she exchanged the traditional handshakes and congratulated DC on their tight victory by one run and their spot in the knockout stages. Royal Challengers Bangalore had the advantage thanks to the offspinner’s heroics with the ball in the dying overs (4/26), and Ghosh’s spectacular performance, but it all fell apart at the final ball.
After her skipper Harmanpreet Kaur of India wrote an amazing chasing masterpiece on the ground, Ghosh, the prodigy, nearly delivered a stunning encore to crown off an intense weekend filled with last-ball dramas at Feroze Shah Kotla in Delhi. Perhaps this last-minute sadness might teach us something that will motivate us to succeed in the future. It will take constant practice and more experience for the 20-year-old to become proficient at the nuances of the job, such as running the initial run harder, better calling, or just greater communication with the non-striker. Though Ghosh would be the first to acknowledge that she’s still a work in progress, RCB would be happy with the development she made in the previous year, even in the face of heartbreaking defeat.
In the first season, the Siliguri stumper, who also bowls medium speed on a part-time basis, had amassed just 138 runs at a pitiful average of 23 for RCB as their designated finisher, in addition to her nine wickets taken behind the stumps. Her contributions have been more steady this year; she has scored 190 runs at an average of 38, including two half-centuries. She’s become much more agile behind the wickets, which is undoubtedly aided by her status as India’s first-choice T20 keeper.
Perry, who scored 49 runs in the chase, said that RCB and India would only benefit greatly from the player’s and this sort of performance.
She clearly has a beautiful bat swing and is a skilled stroke player. I’ve played against Richa for Australia as well as alongside her at RCB, and having knowing her for a short period, I think she’s improved much in the past year. She has been outstanding in both her hitting and keeping. She had a fantastic series against us and has continued to play well in the WPL. Even though she is still a young player, she has gone a long way. It’s unsettling to consider the extent of her potential.
