In victory or defeat there is no dearth of effort from the 38-year-old Jhulan Goswami.
In the two one-dayers against South Africa at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium, Jhulan has taken six of the 12 wickets, conceding 80 from 20 overs.
Tons of experience in the international arena has taught her to “stick to the basics”, especially when returning to cricket after a long gap.
The World Cup next year may be a target, but Jhulan believes in “performing every day”.
Motivation
“Representing India is the biggest motivation. My job is to perform each and every day, and maintain fitness. I am doing a lot of training and following a routine,” said Jhulan after India’s victory in the second one-dayer.
Jhulan conceded that the Indian bowling was a little wayward in the first match and quite “disciplined” in the second. Jhulan herself bowled six wides and two no-balls in the second match, one of which cost her a wicket. That was because she was really bending her tall frame to extract every bit of juice the pitch offered in the first session.
Jhulan pointed out that it was not easy to play shots early in the day, because of the moisture, and that batting was a lot easier in the warm afternoon, when the players could hit through the line.
Thrilled
Obviously thrilled to hear the Board’s announcement of a Test match against England, Jhulan said that the whole team was “excited and looking forward” to it.
“There is a lot of challenge, mental and physical, in playing a Test. Things change every session. We will be playing a Test after 2014,” said Jhulan, who has played only 10 Tests as compared to 184 ODIs.
India had beaten South Africa in that last Test in Mysuru by an innings.
The team, however, is focused for now on sustaining its upper hand against South Africa in the one-day series.
