London, Jul 18 (PTI) India batter Pratika Rawal on Friday clarified that her shoulder contact with England cricketers during the first Women’s ODI was “not intentional” after she was fined and handed one demerit point by the ICC.
The ICC had earlier imposed a 10 per cent match fee fine and handed a demerit point to Rawal for breaching its Code of Conduct, saying the Indian batter engaged in “avoidable physical contact” with England’s Lauren Filer and Sophie Ecclestone in the 18th and 19th overs.
“It was not intentional. I was just running in my way and that shoulder barge thing was completely out of… It was not deliberate in that sense,” Rawal told the media on the eve of the second ODI here.
“I don’t think there is a (need to have a) reaction to it or maybe (make) a fuss out of it. It was not intentional,” she added on the incident that took place at Southampton.
England were also fined five per cent of their match fee for maintaining a slow over-rate during the opening ODI which India won by four wickets.
The ICC said both Rawal and England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt “accepted their respective sanctions” imposed by the match referee.
Rawal said India are focussing on one game at a time given they are coming off a 3-2 win in the five-match T20I series and need only one win from next two matches to win the ODI series.
“We are taking just one game at a time. Currently, our prime focus is to win this series. To win the next match, we are already up in the series. Our prime focus is to win this series with 3-0, that will be great,” she said.
“Also, what I feel like, keeping one thing at a time, it helps with better focus and better concentration so we are just on that note,” she added.
The right-handed top-order batter said scoring against teams like England Australia — with whom India will play three ODIs before the World Cup at home — will give her a lot of confidence.
The opener made a 51-ball 36 in the first match that India won by four wickets.
“Scoring well against teams like England and Australia gives you a lot of confidence and when we get a lot of matches against them, it builds a type of confidence that is required in the upcoming series and matches,” Rawal said.
“It’s a great initiative to play as many matches as we can. Also, the fact that the way our team is progressing right now is amazing and there has been a lot of contribution from all the players,” she added. PTI DDV UNG
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