"It means you have not worked on yourself" - Anjum Chopra criticizes Shafali Verma for her dismissal in 1st T20I vs Bangladesh

Anjum Chopra has criticized Shafali Verma for the mode of her dismissal in the first T20I against Bangladesh.

India restricted Bangladesh to 114/5 after asking them to bat first in the series opener in Mirpur on Sunday, July 9. Although Shafali was dismissed for a duck, Harmanpreet Kaur and Co. chased down the target with seven wickets and 22 deliveries to spare to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

While reflecting on India's chase in a video shared on her YouTube channel, Chopra questioned Shafali if she put in enough hard yards ahead of the series:

"When India came to bat, I saw the same thing lacking, especially Shafali Verma. Bangladesh played only one fast bowler in their lineup. Marufa Akter is a very young player, we saw her in the T20 World Cup in February, she has pace and swing but you should be slightly ready as an opener."

The former Indian skipper added:

"Shafali Verma committed the same mistake once again. She played around the front pad and got out lbw without opening her account. It will create an impact that she got out for a duck and the bigger impact will be created because of the way she got out. It means you have not worked on yourself and if you have done, it was not enough."

Chopra added that the Indian coaching staff and Shafali herself have to work on her technical deficiency:

"You don't make this mistake in the opening match of the season or series. It is understandable if you play like that when you are scoring runs. So this is a caution and also homework, especially for the Indian team's coaching staff or for Shafali Verma herself."

Shafali has aggregated 1333 runs at a below-par average of 23.80 in the 57 T20Is she has played. The right-handed opener has struggled against the incoming ball quite often and will need to rectify the issue if she wants to be more consistent in international cricket.

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"Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur are seasoned campaigners" - Anjum Chopra on the duo's match-winning partnership

Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana starred with the bat during India's chase.

While observing that the Indian batters looked rusty, Anjum Chopra praised Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur in particular for helping their team chase down the target:

"Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur are seasoned campaigners. Harmanpreet Kaur won the Player of the Match with a half-century and won the game for the team as well but I found the batting rusty. It should be the case as well as the Indian team haven't played competitive cricket since the WPL."

Harmanpreet (54* off 35) and Mandhana (38 off 34) strung together a 70-run third-wicket partnership after India were reduced to 21/2 at one stage. The Indian skipper, who struck six fours and two sixes during her innings, was chosen as the Player of the Match for her unbeaten half-century.