'As an allrounder I have a lot to do in every department because competition has gone up'

Later, in the 17th over, she set up Suzie Bates with a string of dot balls under overcast conditions, bowling her for her 50th ODI wicket.Deepti says that a good run in overseas leagues can help recalibrate international careers. For an example, she only needs to look to Mandhana, who went through a lean patch during the World Cup, stringing together a series of single-digit scores after making 90 and 108 in the first two matches, but topped the batting charts when she came back to England for her maiden KSL stint."Smriti becoming the Player of the Tournament [in KSL], becoming the leading run-getter last year, showed that Indians can not only do well, but excel. A second franchise, Lancashire Thunder, offered her a contract ten days later, but she didn't waver."I had a chat with Trevor Griffin [Western Storm head coach] on WhatsApp," says Deepti, "and since Smriti had played there last year, that's also a bit of an assurance, for I know there's someone I already know and have played with, who knows the group, the coach and the culture."The three-team Women's T20 Challenge, held in Jaipur last May during the IPL, also brought learnings she hopes to use in the days leading up to the World T20 in February-March next year, and the World Cup in 2021."Sophie [Ecclestone, England spin-bowling allrounder] is only 19 or 20, but in the Women's T20 Challenge, I saw how sorted she was," says Deepti. Bowling wicket to wicket may seem simple but it helps me get in a few dot balls here and there."As far as batting goes, Deepti says she has altered her approach this past domestic season, playing for Bengal, and later while training under her elder brother Sumit during a visit to her home town Agra."I tried to adopt a slightly more aggressive approach," she says, "because if at any point the team wants me to perform a role in that mould, I should be able to do that. Everyone in the Indian team knows Deepti does this, so they just let me be, but no opposition batsman has ever told me anything about it."Which side of the debate does she come down on?"If I have to mankad, I'll give the non-striker a warning first, because even though it's within the laws, I don't think it's in the spirit of the game."Now in the fifth year of her international career, Deepti says captaining her former domestic sides UP and Central Zone, and India Green last year, and playing and living in a new city, Kolkata, as a professional for Bengal since the 2017-18 season, have helped broaden her perspective on playing for the national team."The younger Deepti would think that once you make it to the Indian team, haan, bahut kuch kar liya [you've achieved a lot].