3 player battles to watch out for in the 4th IND vs AUS T20I

India Women will take on Australia Women in the fourth T20I at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday, December 17. With the series on the line, the hosts face a must-win situation with Australia holding a 2-1 lead in the five-match rubber.

The third T20I didn't go according to plan for India, who failed to chase down 173 in good batting conditions. Australia were led by an Ellyse Perry masterclass that saw them post 172, although it seemed below-par on a good batting surface.

India stumbled along after finding themselves in a position of strength and surrendered the contest by 21 runs. Harmanpreet Kaur and Co. now have absolutely no room for slip-ups going forward.

There's a lot more riding on this series considering the Women's T20 World Cup to be played in South Africa in February 2023. With this in mind, let's look at three player battles that could shape which way the 4th T20I heads.

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#1 Shafali Verma vs Darcie Brown

Shafali Verma lived a charmed life in the third T20I against Australia. After a dropped chance went her way, she made it a point to capitalize on it as she tore into the bowlers.

The wheels came off India's chase the moment she was dismissed for 52 off 41 deliveries. Amidst that, she was peppered with the short stuff by Ellyse Perry, something that has come to the fore as an evident weakness.

Darcie Brown might have started with a flurry of wides but she roared back to pick up three wickets in her first appearance of the series. Not only does she have the pace, but she also has the ability to swing the new ball. This sets things up for an engrossing battle in the powerplay come the fourth T20I.

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#2 Anjali Sarvani vs Alyssa Healy

Left-arm seamer Anjali Sarvani produced a ripper of an in-swinger to send Australian skipper Alyssa Healy packing in the third T20I. Bowling the second over of the innings, she castled Healy with a jaffa to avert that threat.

As has been well-documented over time, the superstar wicketkeeper-batter is known to hit her straps when her team needs her the most. So far, it has been quiet going this series but if anyone knows how to flick a switch at the right moment, it is Healy.

To that end, Sarvani would want to produce another moment of magic and douse any possibility of the same on Saturday. She has impressed thus far for India and would be keen to lay down another marker in the fourth T20I.

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#3 Harmanpreet Kaur vs Alana King

Despite getting a couple of starts in the series, there just hasn't been a sense of fluency to Harmanpreet Kaur's stay in the middle thus far. The Indian skipper has had her task cut out thus far and there could be another one in the form of leg-spinner Alana King in the fourth T20I.

Mind you, King hasn't made a huge impact of her own just yet in the series. With Australia heading into Saturday's contest with a series lead, she will be chomping at the bit to leave her own stamp on the rubber.

The wicket at the Brabourne Stadium is known to produce sufficient runs and no boundary rope in the world is big enough for Harmanpreet. With India inevitably needing her to hang around for the final flourish on most days, how she counters the guile of King could be decisive.

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Can India draw level against Australia and take the series into a decider? Let us know in the comments section below!

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