Deepti on Niki Prasad: 'It didn't seem at all like she was making her debut'

It looked like it would be a straightforward chase for India when they restricted Zimbabwe to 114, but it was anything but that. Offspinner Nyasha Gwanzura came on in the second over, took three wickets in her first two overs, and India were suddenly 19 for 4.

That the hosts eventually won the first T20I in Raipur comfortably, with four wickets and 26 balls in hand, was down to an 82-run partnership for the fifth wicket between Deepti Sharma and Niki Prasad. Senior pro Deepti scored 49 off 37 balls, and Prasad, making her India debut, an unbeaten 39 off 35.

"Niki played really well," Deepti said in her post-match press conference. "Honestly, it didn't seem at all like she was making her debut. It felt like she had played quite a few matches in the past, for the country.

"This confidence from a youngster is remarkable - you're building a partnership when the team needs it, winning the match from a tough situation. I'm sure she'll take a lot of confidence from this match."

Even though the partnership began in tense circumstances, Deepti said there was no sense of panic in India's dressing room.

"To tell you the truth, the two of us were there, there was Richa [Ghosh] as well, batting behind us. It didn't feel like [a situation where] anything could happen," Deepti said. "We took a bit of a pause at that moment, and thought about what to do next.

"It definitely wasn't [a situation for panic], because if there's no pressure, how will you grow strong as a player, and as a team? These situations are necessary from time to time, and from there we took the team to a place from where we won the match. As a team, this is what we want."

India's early wickets largely came from attacking shots that went wrong. Deepti backed India's commitment to an aggressive approach, saying there would always be the odd occasion when luck would go the opposition's way.

"Of course, we want to play an aggressive brand of cricket, and that was in our mind," Deepti said. "Occasionally these things happen in a match. There is no god who gives you exactly what you want. But we always learn from our innings and our matches. I'm sure what happened today won't happen in the next match."

Deepti fell one short of a half-century, top-edging a sweep when India needed 14 to win.

"At that moment I felt bad for not finishing the match," she said. "I had thought I should build a partnership, take us close [to the target], and then finish, but I made a small mistake. I'm sure I won't repeat it, but it was just the thought that it would be good to finish the match as quickly as possible."