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India continue their winning run in the Tri-Nation Women's ODI series by defeating South Africa by 15 runs. After posting a daunting total of 276, with a stand out performance from Pratika Rawal scoring 78 of 91 balls, the South Africans came out with intent in the second half.
Tazmin Britz's century gave real hope to the South Africans, but she had to retire hurt due to cramps. The Indian team took crucial wickets during key moments and turned the match in their favor.
India set a strong total with a team effort
India posted a strong total, thanks to a brilliant 78 from Pratika Rawal, who became the fastest to reach 500 ODI runs in women's cricket. Both Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues scored 41 runs pushing the total to 276.
For South Africa, Nonkululeko Mlaba was the standout bowler with two wickets. Most of the others took one each, except Sune Luus and Chloe Tryon. However, Annerie Dercksen was quite expensive with the ball, which may have made the difference in the end.
South Africa starts strong but suffers setbacks
Chasing a big target, South Africa's openers came out firing, putting pressure on the Indian bowlers from the start. They made the most of the powerplay and built a strong 140-run stand, putting their team in a good position.
Laura Wolvaardt got a good start before getting out, while Tazmin Brits was in great form, scoring a brilliant century with ease. She got good support from Sune Luus for a while, but Luus’s dismissal came at a tough moment. Things got worse when Brits had to retire hurt due to cramps, with about 100 runs still needed.
The turning point
That moment Brits retired hurt was the turning point of the match as India took full advantage by taking key wickets. Chloe Tryon and Annerie Dercksen tried to keep South Africa in the game with some big hits. But things changed completely in the 48th over when Sneh Rana dismissed both batters and also removed Tazmin Brits, who had returned.
Rana finished with a brilliant five-wicket haul, while Arundhati Reddy, Shree Charani, and Deepti Sharma took one wicket each.
South Africa, despite being in control for most of the chase, lost their last six wickets for just 21 runs and fell short by 15 runs in a match they seemed set to win.
Post-Match presentations
Sneh Rana was named the Player of the Match for her fantastic fifer. She said she focused on using variations and taking the pace off the ball, just like her captain and the team had advised.
She added that she never gives up and always tries to give her best whenever the team needs her.
India's captain Harmanpreet Kaur said the team gave their 100% from the very first ball. She highlighted fielding as the key difference, saying they saved at least 20 runs.
She ended by saying she’s very happy with the bowlers, who gave everything to help secure the win.
Match Summary
IND-W: 276/6 (50) | Pratika Rawal 78; Nonkululeko Mlaba 10-55-2
RSA-W: 261 (49.2/50) | Tazmin Brits 109; Sneh Rana 10-43-5