India’s women’s cricket team concluded the ODI series against South Africa with an emphatic victory, securing a clean sweep with a six-wicket win in the third and final match at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday. Chasing a target of 216 runs, the Indian team showcased their dominance, comfortably achieving the target with over nine overs to spare.
Smriti Mandhana once again emerged as the star performer, delivering another captivating display of batting artistry. Her impressive innings of 90 runs off 83 balls, adorned with 11 boundaries, added another remarkable chapter to her already illustrious career. It was a near-century, missing out on a third consecutive hundred by just 10 runs due to a top-edge that found the hands of the short-fine fielder. Nevertheless, Mandhana’s performance was nothing short of dazzling, as she effortlessly drove, clipped, and steered the ball with precision, delighting the 15,000 fans who had assembled to witness her brilliance.
Priya Punia, stepping in for D. Hemalatha, made a significant contribution with a solid knock of 28 runs, while skipper Harmanpreet Kaur provided valuable support with 42 runs. However, opener Shafali Verma, despite getting a start of 25 runs, fell victim to her aggressive approach, once again failing to convert her start.
Earlier, South Africa, after electing to bat first, got off to a promising start with a strong opening partnership between captain Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits. Wolvaardt scored a well-crafted 61 runs, laced with 7 boundaries, and Brits contributed a valuable 38 runs, adding 102 runs together. This partnership represented a significant improvement from the highest partnership of just 14 runs in the previous matches.
However, the dismissal of Wolvaardt, caught by speedster Arundhati Reddy off her own bowling, triggered a collapse. Brits was run out after a misjudged single, and Anneke Bosch fell to another exceptional caught-and-bowled effort by Arundhati, who finished with figures of 2/36.
The Proteas’ slide continued as Shreyanka Patil, who replaced leggie Asha Sobhana, removed the dangerous Marizanne Kapp, leaving them struggling at 120 for four. While there were small pockets of resistance from Nadine de Klerk (26 runs) and Mieke de Ridder (26 not out), their efforts were ultimately insufficient to prevent South Africa from suffering a heavy defeat.
