Indian Women's Cricket Team Wins First ODI World Cup

Under the captaincy of Harmanpreet Kaur, the Indian women's cricket team created history by winning the ODI World Cup for the first time after 47 years. In the final, India defeated South Africa by 52 runs. Shefali Verma was awarded Player of the Match for scoring 87 runs and taking 2 crucial wickets.

The final match took place at DY Patil Stadium, where South Africa won the toss and chose to bowl first. India posted a total of 298 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. Key performances included Shefali Verma scoring 87, Deepti Sharma 58, Smriti Mandhana 45, and Richa Ghosh 34 runs. In response, South Africa was bowled out for 246 runs. Captain Laura Wolvaardt scored her second consecutive century but was dismissed before winning the match for her team.

India’s journey in the World Cup began with a 59-run victory against Sri Lanka under the DLS method. The team then defeated Pakistan by 88 runs. After initial wins, India faced setbacks, losing to South Africa, Australia, and England in consecutive matches, creating uncertainty about their semi-final qualification.

India bounced back with a 53-run victory over New Zealand (DLS method) and progressed to the semi-finals after the rain-affected match against Bangladesh ended with no result. In the second semi-final, India defeated Australia by 5 wickets, with Jemima Rodrigues playing a match-winning unbeaten innings of 127 runs, supported by captain Harmanpreet Kaur's 89 runs.