New Delhi, Oct 17 (IANS) Senior England batter Heather Knight acknowledged the threat posed by India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana ahead of their crucial 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup clash, as she admitted that keeping the left-handed batter quiet will be a real challenge for the visitors.

After having scores of 8, 23 and 23, Smriti came back into top form by hitting 80 against Australia in Visakhapatnam, though it went in vain as India lost the game by three wickets. The hosts will be hoping Smriti and skipper Harmanpreet will be amongst runs when India take on England in a marquee game at the Holkar Stadium in Indore on Sunday.

“She hasn’t changed much from when I first played against her, which says a lot considering the level of fame she has now. She’s still the same old Smriti. She’s also incredibly hard to keep quiet with the bat, which will be a big challenge for us when we play India.”

“Harmanpreet and Smriti are very different characters; chalk and cheese, really. Harman wears her heart on her sleeve. She brings passion, energy, and competitiveness. She’s a captain I’ve respected for how she plays the game and takes people along with her. It’s going to be a tough test against India; they’re playing really well at the moment, and Harman will be key for the Indian team,” said Heather on JioStar.

Heather also recalled the first meeting with Smriti and how she remained humble despite all the adulation coming her way. “I remember playing against Smriti in her first ODI series. When I saw her playing, I thought, ‘Wow, this girl is going to be quite good.’ Since then, I’ve admired how she’s progressed as a batter and how she’s always carried herself with such calmness.”

“That calmness is something I also value as a cricketer, and I have a huge amount of respect for her. I’ve seen her grow as a leader as well. I played with her in England for Western Storm, in Hobart, and later at RCB under her captaincy in what was a really tough first WPL season for us.”

“She found that year difficult, but I gained a lot of respect for how she came back stronger the next season and found her feet. Smriti is a proper rock star in India. Just being around her and seeing how many people recognise her is crazy, but she deals with it all while staying humble,” she elaborated.

India had earlier beaten England 2-1 in an away ODI series earlier this year and skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt feels Sunday’s clash will make for an exciting watch. “With Harmanpreet, if you put one plan in place for her batting, she can easily get into the zone where that doesn’t really matter, whatever’s coming down will go to the boundary anyway.”

“We’ll have to do a lot of thinking when we come up against her, because if she’s in that zone, she’s very difficult to stop. India vs England is always a great competitive match, and Captain versus Captain will be fun as well.”

“Smriti, meanwhile, is such an elegant batter, very easy on the eye and a joy to watch when you’re not playing against her. Every team has brilliant batters, and I think this tournament will be full of quality. Hopefully, we’ll have some great matches, which will be exciting for world cricket,” she said.

–IANS

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