'We don't take any team lightly, whether it is Sri Lanka or Pakistan...': Deepti Sharma on Asia Cup final

Dubai: India will remain unfazed by whether Pakistan or defending champions Sri Lanka advance from the second semi-final of the Women’s T20 Asia Cup, with all-rounder Deepti Sharma asserting that the squad maintains absolute focus regardless of the opposition ahead of Sunday’s final.

India secured their place in the final for the sixth consecutive edition following a 40-run victory over Bangladesh in Thursday’s first semi-final. Speaking after the match, Deepti Sharma noted that the team would observe the second semi-final closely before finalising their tactical preparation.

"Actually, it depends on their result, but the Indian team is knowing about that," Deepti said when asked about preferred opposition for the final.

"The team doesn't take any team lightly. Doesn't matter, like maybe Sri Lanka, Pakistan, whoever comes in the final. We always think as a team how we can do better in each and every game. As a collective team performance, how we can do better," she added during the post-match press conference in Dubai.

India have already registered a victory against Pakistan in the tournament, dismissing them for 55 before chasing down the target with 68 balls remaining. While a second India-Pakistan final remains a possibility, Sri Lanka enter the other semi-final as defending champions.

Deepti confirmed the squad would conduct a collective analysis of the upcoming fixture.

"After this game, we'll sit together tomorrow, and we will see tomorrow's game, that will help us to do more strategy towards the finals," she said.

Match Performance and All-Round Impact

Deepti Sharma played a central role in India’s semi-final triumph, taking 3 for 26 as Bangladesh were restricted to 109 for 7 in pursuit of India’s 149 for 6.

Shafali Verma led the batting effort with 64 off 40 balls, overcoming four dropped catches to anchor the innings on a slow surface. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur remained unbeaten on 24, while Richa Ghosh added 21 off 16 deliveries and Deepti Sharma contributed a six-ball 13 not out.

Bangladesh made an encouraging start to their chase before succumbing to India's spin attack. Sharma struck in her opening over before later removing Sobhana Mostary and Sharmin Akter to break Bangladesh’s middle order.

With 11 dismissals, Deepti currently leads the tournament’s bowling charts, while remaining focused on her secondary role with the bat.

"Actually, when I started my cricket journey, [it was] as an all-rounder, so it [being able to contribute in two departments] always helped from the starting only," she said.

"Whenever I get an opportunity in batting, I always trust that I can contribute in batting also. So I'm glad [about the] few balls I got to hit today. It always gives me confidence. Either bowling first or batting first doesn't matter to me, but I always contribute as an all-rounder for the team," she added.

Fielding Concerns Addressed

Despite remaining unbeaten throughout the tournament, India’s catching remained a point of scrutiny after four chances were put down against Bangladesh.

Addressing the errors, Deepti defended the team's ongoing training standards ahead of the title clash.

"As a team in fielding, we have been doing good [work in training]. We are doing practice sessions taking a number of catches as well as fielding also," she said.