Mumbai: The Indian women’s cricket team created history on Sunday by defeating South Africa by 52 runs at Navi Mumbai to win their first-ever World Cup title. Shafali Verma’s explosive 87 off 78 balls and Deepti Sharma’s lethal five-wicket haul guided India to this historic victory.
Batting first, India scored 298 for 7 in 50 overs. In reply, the South African team was bowled out for 246 in 49.3 overs despite Laura Wolvaardt’s century. Wolvaardt scored 101 off 98 balls, but once she was dismissed, South Africa’s hopes evaporated.
Shafali-Smriti’s Explosive Start
The match began two hours late due to rain, and India faced an early setback when South Africa won the toss and invited India to bat first. However, Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana provided a blazing start, adding 58 runs in the first 8 overs without loss.
Shafali struck 5 fours in her first 19 balls and adopted an aggressive approach against the fast bowlers. Mandhana scored 14 runs off Ayabonga Khaka in the sixth over. Together, they built a 104-run partnership for the first wicket, with Mandhana contributing 45 runs.
Middle-Order Struggles, But Deepti-Ghosh Steadied the Ship
After Mandhana’s dismissal, Indian batters struggled with the slow pace of the pitch. Shafali scored 87 off 78 balls, breaking her previous best of 71 runs, but fatigue and cramps caused her dismissal while attempting a big shot.
Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Amanjot Kaur all got starts but couldn’t convert them into big scores. After losing 5 wickets for 245 runs in the 44th over, Richa Ghosh played a quickfire 34-run innings. She effortlessly hit a six over covers off her second ball.
Deepti Sharma played a responsible innings of 58 runs in the lower order. She scored with slog-sweeps and kept the strike rotating. India managed only 98 runs in the last 15 overs and just 69 in the final 10 overs. Khaka, after conceding 29 runs in her first three overs, gave away only 29 runs in her last 7 overs while taking 3 wickets.
Brilliant Performance by Indian Bowlers
Chasing 298, South Africa suffered an early blow when Amanjot Kaur pounced to her wrong side from midwicket and threw down the stumps at the bowler’s end, finding Tazmin Brits short.
Two overs later, Anneke Bosch was dismissed lbw to Shree Charani’s delivery, ending her disappointing tournament with a six-ball duck.
Wolvaardt made a blistering start, scoring 35 off 30 balls and hitting a clean six off Deepti Sharma. Sune Luus supported her, and they added over 50 runs for the third wicket.
Shafali’s Part-Time Bowling Changed the Match
Just when South Africa appeared strong, captain Harmanpreet Kaur handed the ball to Shafali. Shafali had taken only one wicket in 30 ODIs, but she dismissed Luus caught and bowled with her second ball. In the first ball of her next over, she had Marizanne Kapp strangled down the leg side.
At 123 for 4 in the 23rd over, South Africa fell well behind the DLS par score. Sinalo Jafta scored only 16 off 29 balls and added just 25 runs with Wolvaardt off 44 balls, increasing the pressure on the run rate.
Deepti’s Five-Wicket Haul Sealed the Victory
Annerie Dercksen silenced the crowd with back-to-back sixes off Radha Yadav, and Wolvaardt hit two fours against Shafali. With 11 overs remaining, South Africa needed 92 runs.
But Deepti Sharma clean bowled Dercksen with a quick yorker in the second over of her new spell. In her next over, she enticed Wolvaardt to go big with a slower ball. The ball dipped, and Wolvaardt mishit it. Amanjot, coming in from deep midwicket, held the catch on the third or fourth attempt while falling to the ground.
Three balls later, Deepti trapped Tryon lbw with a cross-seam delivery. Nadine de Klerk kept faint hopes alive, but scoring 78 runs with only numbers 10 and 11 for company was impossible.
Deepti Sharma was named Player of the Tournament, and Shafali Verma was declared Player of the Match. This victory marks the beginning of a new era for Indian women’s cricket.
Also Read | World Champions India Receive Congratulations from PM Modi and President; Sachin Calls it Historic Like 1983
