At the stroke of midnight, India awake as World Champions!

NAVI MUMBAI: The ending of the fairytale called India's maiden Women's World Cup triumph couldn't person been much fitting. Chasing a debased afloat toss, South African big-hitter Nadine de Klerk, who had smashed a 54-ball 84 not retired successful the league signifier to inflict a three-wicket decision connected India, chipped the shot to other cover, wherever Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur jogged backwards to instrumentality the catch. Having slammed a invaluable half-century (58, 58b, 3x4, 1x6) earlier, Deepti Sharma took a five-for (5 for 39 successful 9.3 overs), making the last her ain with some bat and shot portion fashioning India's biggest-ever triumph successful women’s cricket.

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Soon after, a 45,000-strong crowd, on with the Indian team, broke into celebrations, with Harman and the Women successful Blue breaking into tears of joy.Finally, the Indian women’s cricket team’s ‘83 infinitesimal had arrived. Fighting backmost aft suffering 3 defeats connected the trot that had enactment their World Cup run successful danger, India won the 3 matches that mattered to transverse the enactment — astatine last, aft galore heartbreaks.Outclassing South Africa by 52 runs successful the last of the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup astatine the DY Patil Stadium connected Sunday night, with 45,000 fans cheering them, India yet enactment an extremity to their agelong hold for an elusive World Cup crown. A cardinal hearts tin present observe the Women successful Blue’s memorable, historic, game-changing triumph for women’s cricket successful India for a agelong clip to travel — courtesy of a subordinate who wasn’t adjacent successful the reserves!

“God has sent maine present to bash thing good,” Shafali Verma had said earlier India slayed giants Australia successful the semifinals, acknowledgment to a superb 100 by Jemimah Rodrigues.

Unfurling a blistering, career-best 87 (78b, 7x4, 2x6), which helped India station 298 for six aft being asked to bat first, and aboriginal taking 2 for 36 successful 7 overs, Shafali Verma — marking a fairytale comeback — played a monolithic portion successful India posting 298 for six aft a two-hour rainfall delay, and past striking captious blows erstwhile South Africa looked to beryllium cruising successful their pursuit astatine 1 stage.

Following up connected a match-winning epic sound of 169 successful the semifinal against England astatine Guwahati, South African skipper and opener Laura Wolvaardt slammed different superb period (101, 98b, 10x4, 1x6).

But erstwhile she was caught — successful the fielder's 3rd effort — by a sprinting Amanjot Kaur disconnected Deepti successful the 42nd over, the crippled was firmly successful India's grip.The Proteas crumbled nether the unit of a gangly pursuit and a location assemblage that cheered their squad to the historical triumph each the way. Chasing 299, South Africa seemed to beryllium coasting astatine 114 for 2 successful the 21st over, earlier Shafali’s duplicate strikes — she caught Sune Luus (25, 31b, 4x4) disconnected her ain innocuous-looking delivery, and had Marizanne Kapp (4) caught down successful her adjacent over.Wolvaardt and chap opener Tazmin Brits (23, 35b, 2x4, 1x6) had added 51 successful 57 balls earlier Amanjot Kaur produced a nonstop deed to springiness India the archetypal breakthrough. Soon, Anneke Bosch, who had a mediocre crippled arsenic she dropped a sitter astatine heavy mid-wicket disconnected Shafali erstwhile the batter was connected 57, was trapped connected the backmost ft by Shree Charani for a six-ball duck.

Banking excessively heavy connected their in-form captain, South Africa were brought backmost into the crippled by Annerie Dercksen (25 disconnected 37 balls), but Deepti yorked her successful the 40th implicit to enactment India successful the driver's seat.Earlier, Shafali Verma's blistering, career-best 87 (78b, 7x4, 2x6) and Deepti Sharma's composed half-century (58, 58b, 3x4, 1x6), on with good enactment acts by Smriti Mandhana (45, 58b, 8x4) and Richa Ghosh (34 disconnected 24 balls, 3x4, 2x6), helped India station a challenging, yet somewhat under-par full of 298 for six against South Africa successful the 2025 Women's ODI World Cup last astatine the DY Patil Stadium connected Sunday.Asked to bat aft a two-hour delayed commencement owed to unseasonal rain, India were disconnected to a flying commencement arsenic Shafali, recalled for the knockouts aft Pratika Rawal's injury, and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana (45), cheered by a vociferous location assemblage of 45,000, added 104 for the opening wicket successful 106 balls to laic the level for a large total.

It was conscionable the 2nd hundred-run opening basal successful WODI World Cup finals.

Playing delightful strokes, the duo brought up India’s 50 successful conscionable 39 balls, arsenic the tourney hosts raced distant to 64 for nary nonaccomplishment successful 10 overs. Looking to instrumentality connected the bowlers by charging down repeatedly, Shafali tonked 2 sixes down the crushed — the 2nd 1 disconnected de Klerk being a dainty to watch.Scoring her archetypal WODI 50 successful implicit 3 years — the past 1 came against South Africa too, successful July 2022 — Shafali, who scored her 5th half-century disconnected 49 balls, took the bull by the horns, taking the onslaught to the Proteas earlier falling abbreviated of her maiden period erstwhile she perished portion trying to wide mid-off disconnected the spirited Ayabonga Khaka, who was the prime of the bowlers, taking 3 for 58 successful 9 overs and striking astatine regular intervals to support South Africa successful the game.Shafali's 87 is present the highest-ever idiosyncratic people by an Indian opening batter successful a World Cup last — men oregon women, ODI oregon T20I. At 21 years and 278 days, she's besides the youngest subordinate to people a 50 successful a Women's ODI World Cup final.The Proteas heaved a suspiration of alleviation erstwhile Mandhana was caught down portion trying to chopped Chloe Tryon, but Shafali, who deed the precise archetypal shot she faced successful the last — from Khaka — for a 4 past point, kept going, adding 62 successful 62 balls for the 2nd wicket with semifinal centurion Jemimah Rodrigues (24 disconnected 37 balls, 1 four).Striving for their maiden World Cup triumph similar India, South Africa were besides boosted by an economical spell by left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba, who took 1 for 47 successful 10 overs connected a batting beauty, putting the brakes connected India's innings.Fighting backmost aft India's commanding start, South Africa did good to contradict the tourney hosts a intelligence 300-mark. Still, India recorded the second-highest full ever successful a Women's ODI World Cup final, down Australia's 356 for 5 against England successful the 2022 World Cup.Striking successful successive overs, Khaka removed Shafali and Jemimah (caught astatine other cover), portion Mlaba castled skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (20 disconnected 29 balls), ending her promising 56-ball, 52-run concern with Deepti Sharma for the 4th wicket.India were cruising astatine 223 for 3 successful the 39th implicit erstwhile Harman was dismissed portion trying to play a precocious cut. That stroke saw them get conscionable 75 successful the remaining overs, mostly acknowledgment to Richa's lusty blows and her 35-ball, 47-run concern for the sixth wicket with Deepti that brought the assemblage alive.

Richa had hammered a power-packed, warring 94 disconnected 77 balls erstwhile these 2 teams met successful the radical stage, and gave impetus to India's innings connected Sunday, smashing sixes disconnected de Klerk and Kapp — a ace changeable implicit other screen disconnected a wide yorker.Anchoring the innings, Deepti stroked her 18th ODI half-century and 3rd successful this tourney earlier she was tally retired disconnected the past ball.While their crushed fielding was brilliant, South Africa dropped a mates of catches. They archetypal fto disconnected Shafali when, batting connected 53 successful the 21st over, she slog-swept Sune Luus to heavy mid-wicket, wherever Anneke Bosch fluffed the chance, and successful the 40th over, skipper Laura Wolvaardt grassed Deepti’s drawback astatine long-on. In between, Marizanne Kapp dropped a somewhat tougher accidental disconnected Deepti disconnected her ain bowling.