India’s leading run-getter in women’s cricket, Mithali Raj, is “crestfallen”, her personal coach R.S.R. Murthy (South Central Railway) said.
Mithali was dropped for the ICC Women’s World T20 semifinal against England at Antigua on Friday.
For those who watched the game, the image of Mithali sitting in the dressing room, watching her teammates with a grim face even as India lost the match sent mixed signals.
Initially, it was believed that she was rested because of an injury. But that was not the case.
“Mithali was told after the warm-up session on the morning of the semifinal that she doesn’t figure in the playing eleven, leaving her disappointed,” said Murthy in a chat with The Hindu .
“I spoke to her last night and she looked mentally and physically geared up for the semifinal and even hinted that she might not open but would play in the middle order,” he said. “I asked her to just enjoy her batting.”
He added: “Apparently, the coach and the captain Harmanpreet Kaur took the call to drop her.”
“Given Mithali’s stature and the fact that she was the player-of-the-match twice in this World Cup, she should have been there for such a big match given her experience and class,” says the coach who trains the India star at the St. John’s Coaching Foundation whenever she is in Hyderabad.
“More disappointing is the captain’s statement that she doesn’t regret dropping Mithali. This is not the way to treat someone who gave her everything for the game.”
It is said that Mithali expressed “disgust and humiliated” after being denied a chance to finish on a high as she has already announced that this will be her last T20 World Cup.
