India lift first Women’s World Cup after beating South Africa

In an electric final at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, the India women’s national cricket team defeated the South Africa women’s national cricket team by 52 runs to lift their first-ever ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup trophy. The hosts posted 298 for 7 batting first, then bowled South Africa out for 246.

Opening batter Shafali Verma led the charge with a blistering 87, and also chipped in with two key wickets. All-rounder Deepti Sharma followed with a 58-run knock and then claimed 5 wickets for 39 runs, finishing the tournament as player of the series with 22 wickets and 215 runs.

South Africa’s skipper, Laura Wolvaardt, responded with a valiant 101, becoming the tournament’s highest run-scorer, yet her efforts weren’t enough as wickets fell two by two after her departure.

The victory marks a watershed moment for Indian women’s cricket, coming after two previous final losses (2005 and 2017) and several years of near misses. Fans and former players hailed the win as a game-changer for the sport in India.

Sources: Reuters; The Guardian; ICC match report