India beat South Africa by 52 runs to claim their first Women’s World Cup title with captain Harmanpreet Kaur calling it just the beginning
INDIA captain Harmanpreet Kaur declared her team’s breakthrough Women’s World Cup triumph as just the beginning following their 52-run victory over South Africa on Sunday.
Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma starred with both bat and ball to propel India to their first World Cup title before a jubilant home crowd at Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium.
The hosts posted 298-7 after being put in to bat in a rain-delayed final before bowling South Africa out for 246 in 45.3 overs.
Opener Verma top-scored with 87 while spinner Sharma contributed a vital run-a-ball 58 before taking five crucial wickets with the ball.
South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt hit a valiant 101 but her departure off Sharma’s bowling sparked wild celebrations among the 45,000-strong crowd.
Sharma claimed the final wicket of Nadine de Klerk for 18 to trigger nationwide celebrations across the cricket-mad nation.
Kaur emphasised that breaking this barrier was just the start for her developing team.
She stated that their next plan involves making winning a habit while continuing to improve for future big occasions.
This victory came at India’s third attempt after finishing runners-up in both 2005 and 2017.
India had struggled during the league phase with three successive defeats before clinching the final semi-final spot.
They then knocked out record seven-time champions and heavy favourites Australia in a stunning semi-final upset.
For South Africa, this marked a third consecutive World Cup final defeat after finishing runners-up in the T20 tournaments of 2023 and 2024.
The Proteas had reached their first ODI World Cup final despite beginning the competition with a 10-wicket thrashing by England.
Wolvaardt expressed immense pride in her team’s campaign despite the final disappointment.
She acknowledged being outplayed by India while vowing that her team would grow from this experience.
Sharma struck key blows with her off-spin including the vital wicket of Annerie Dercksen who had built a 61-run partnership with Wolvaardt.
Her double-wicket over that removed both Wolvaardt and Chloe Tryon took India to the brink of their historic victory.
Kaur’s decision to give the ball to part-time off-spinner Verma in the 20th over proved crucial as the youngster removed Sune Luus.
Verma then dislodged Marizanne Kapp in her next over to plunge South Africa into deeper trouble.
Kaur described the decision to hand Verma the ball as the turning point of the final.
Verma had been brought into the team for the semi-final after fellow opener Pratika Rawal suffered an injury.
She gave India a flying start with the bat by putting on 104 runs with Smriti Mandhana who contributed 45.
Sharma then added valuable runs with her 18th ODI fifty despite three wickets for Ayabonga Khaka.
Sharma finished with a tournament-best 22 wickets while contributing 215 runs with the bat to earn the player of the World Cup award. – AFP
