Deepti became the second female cricketer to score a half-century in the first four Tests.

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Mumbai . Indian women’s cricketer Deepti Sharma on Friday equaled a world record and became the second player in the history of women’s cricket, joining Australia’s Denise Emerson née Alderman, to score half-centuries in her first four Test matches.

Deepti was batting on 70 at stumps on the second day of the one-off Test against Australia Women at the Wankhede Stadium here. She and fast bowler Pooja Vastrakar added 102 runs for an incomplete eighth-wicket partnership, which helped India recover from the early fall of four wickets just before the tea break. At the time of stumps, India’s score was 376/7 in 119 overs, with Deepti on 70 and Pooja on 33.

Deepti had scored 67 and 20 in the previous Test against England at the DY Patil Stadium last week. The 26-year-old from Agra, Uttar Pradesh, scored 54 runs in the second innings of her first Test against England in Bristol in 2021, helping India draw the match.

In her next Test against Australia at Carrara in September 2021, Deepti scored 66 runs in the first innings, helping India declare their first innings 377/8.

DY Patil and consecutive half-centuries at Wankhede helped her create the record and join Dennis Emerson in scoring half-centuries in the first four Test matches.

Dennis scored 84, 131, 84 and 58 in his first four innings against England in December and January 1985.

In this way, Deepti became the ninth batsman in women’s cricket to score four half-centuries in consecutive matches.

The record for most consecutive half-centuries is jointly held by Australia’s Peta Vercoe and India’s Hemlata Kala, who scored five consecutive half-centuries.

Vercoe scored 68, 81, 67, 105 and 78 in five Test matches – one against New Zealand (1979) and four against India in 1984. Hemlata scored 110, 64, 62, 110 and 68 runs in five matches between 2002 and 2006.

–IANS

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