Where did India go wrong in the ODIs against Australia?

After a thumping win in the one-off women's Test at the Wankhede, India were handed a 3-0 clean sweep by Australia in the ODI series at the same venue. It was India's third successive whitewash at home against Australia, and the latest defeat - in the third ODI on Tuesday - was their third biggest in the format. Where did India go wrong in the ODIs?

In his first press conference as India head coach, Amol Muzumdar had announced that "fielding and fitness are of highest priority". In the three ODIs, India let ten catches slip - seven in the second match alone. New-ball bowlers Renuka Singh and Pooja Vastrakar created three chances inside the first ten overs but none were taken. That allowed Australia opener Phoebe Litchfield to score her second successive fifty. In the third game too, she was given a life by Deepti Sharma at backward point while Ellyse Perry was dropped by Smriti Mandhana at deep midwicket.

"We've not played to the highest potential, especially in the fielding department," Jemimah Rodrigues said after the last ODI. "We have been working on it, but [these are] definitely not the standards expected for the Indian Women's cricket team but I can assure you that we will work on it and come back stronger."

The inability to close out matches, especially in run-chases, has time and again put the spotlight on India's lower-middle order. This is where Richa Ghosh's presence was a welcome change. Since the start of 2021, only Sneh Rana has a better strike rate (88.80) for India while batting at Nos. 6 and 7 - the numbers inflated by her unbeaten 53 off 48 against Pakistan in the 2022 World Cup - than Ghosh's 85.57. Ghosh has shown the promise of scoring quick runs lower down the order in limited-overs internationals, with two of her three ODI half-centuries coming at No. 6.

However, against Australia, Ghosh was promoted to one-drop, a position Muzumdar said was "the best spot" for her. "We believe Richa can be a good top-order player," he said after her 96 in the second ODI.

This robs India of the firepower down the order with their reluctance to use Vastrakar's batting prowess regularly. Deepti has the most runs at Nos. 6 and 7 for India since January 2021 but strikes at 72.11 with just one six, as compared to the seven sixes Ghosh hit. Deepti's ability to close out games in the face of an increasing asking rate has come under the scanner multiple times, the three-run defeat in the second ODI being the latest instance.

The move to have Ghosh in the top order also indicates that the team sees Rodrigues' best utility at No. 5, where she can exploit the gaps and not always worry about clearing a packed infield. She proved her mettle in that role with 82 in the first ODI and 44 in the second, which kept India in the chase.

Her belligerence at the top of the order came as a breath of fresh air when Shafali Verma first broke into the scene. But her inconsistency - she has single-digit scores in each of her ODI innings since September 2022 - meant India left her out of the XI in four of their last six games in the format. Muzumdar confirmed that she was "dropped" and that Yastika Bhatia retained her place at the top after her 49 in the first ODI.

Following her unbeaten 143 against England in September 2022, Harmanpreet Kaur has had scores under ten in five of the seven innings she batted in. She tallied only 17 in the three ODIs against Australia, the lowest in a bilateral series by an Indian captain. Rodrigues brushed aside concerns over Harmanpreet's form and said, "There were days I didn't score but Harry di played for me. It happens with everybody, however great you are. Every player has a low phase, but when di is not scoring, because I'm batting so well, I need to make sure that I bat for her."

Four of the last five debutants in ODIs for India have been spinners. Three spinners out of those - B Anusha, Saika Ishaque and Mannat Kashyap - have played just one ODI each. Both Ishaque and Kashyap made their debuts in this series. But their inability to exert control in the middle phase combined with India's poor death-overs returns allowed the visitors to run away with the series.

In the second game, Australia were reeling at 216 for 7 in the 46th over when Alana King walked in. Australia then managed to score 42 off the last 29 balls with King's 17-ball 28 not out. In the third match, she helped Australia add 39 in the last 22 balls and finished unbeaten on 26 off just 14. Overall in the series, India leaked runs at close to nine an over in the last five overs of the innings as opposed to Australia, who went at under eight an over in the phase.

As many as six bowlers bowled for India in the last five overs with Vastrakar bleeding 47 off 24 balls, King being the primary attacker, bludgeoning her for four sixes in the series. While Vastrakar impressed in the red-ball games against England and Australia, she still is learning the ropes of death bowling in white-ball cricket it appears.