Was Smriti Mandhana Wrongly Given Out in IND vs AUS Women's World Cup Semifinal?

India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana was controversially dismissed during the all-important semifinal match against Australia on October 30 at the DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai. Mandhana looked in supreme form with the bat during her time at the crease but couldn't go on to score a big one for her team.

Her wicket could be the turning point in the game as Australia chase for yet another World Cup glory. It was a huge blow for India women's cricket team as Mandhana is also highest run-getter in the tournament for her team. The Smriti Mandhana wicket controversy is surely not ending soon and it has brought the technology back in focus.

Was Smriti Mandhana Out or Not Out Against Australia?

It was the tenth over of India's innings with both Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues cruising along nicely after the fall of Shafali Verma's wicket. During this over, Kim Garth bowled a ball well down the leg side and Alyssa Healy, who was standing up to the stumps, took a fine catch. Healy appealed for a caught behind only to be denied by the umpire. The bowler too didn't look much interested.

However, Australia captain decided to review in the last moment. Mandhana looked confident that she had not nicked the ball behind. But the Ultra edge showed something else. There was a fine disturbance as the ball went past Mandhana's edge through to the wicketkeeper. The Australian fielders were jubilated after watching it on the big screen and started celebrating.

The Australian players felt the importance of Mandhana's wicket as she is also one of the best women cricketers in the world. In the end, the umpire had to overturn the decision which had Smriti Mandhana in total disbelief. Her wicket also silenced the crowd at the stadium which came in thousands to watch this big game.

After the fall of Smriti Mandhana's wicket, captain Harmanpreet Kaur stitched an important partnership with Jemimah Rodrigues to bring India's innings back on track. However, the Women in Blue still have a huge task in hand to go past against this Australian team, which is arguably the best women's cricket team in the world.

Excellent Tournament for Smriti Mandhana

While she couldn't contribute much in the all-important semi-final, Mandhana is having an excellent tournament with the bat. She got off to a slow start as she was unable to score big in the first three matches. However, she got into her own during the match against South Africa. She kept on giving good starts to India even though the team wasn't performing well in the league matches.

Mandhana has scored 389 runs in eight matches at an average of 55 and a strike rate of more than 100 so far. Currently, she is the second-highest run-scorer of the tournament, only behind South Africa's captain, Laura Wolvaardt. The left-handed opener will hope her team goes into the final, where South Africa are awaiting the winners of IND vs AUS women world cup semifinal.