India make history with first Women's World Cup crown after win over South Africa - 'We're going to dominate all over the world in every format'
Published 02/11/2025 at 19:59 GMT
It was a historic day for India's women as they won the World Cup for the first time ever with a 52-run victory over South Africa. Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma starred for an India side that proved too strong for South Africa, despite the best efforts of centurion Laura Wolvaardt, whose 101 was by some distance the highest score of the Proteas' innings.
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India's Amanjot Kaur warned that the new Women's World Cup winners are "going to dominate all over the world in every format" after beating South Africa in Navi Mumbai.
The hosts won by 52 runs to lift the trophy for the first time, having set a target of 299 and bowled out South Africa for 246.
And Amanjot vowed that India will claim more significant victories in the coming years.
"This means a lot," she said. "We have created history. This is the start. We are going to dominate all over the world in every format.
"I'm glad we could do it when it mattered the most."
On the vocal support from India's passionate fans, she added: "It is their victory as well, they came out in great numbers to support us. Thank you."
Shafali Verma was the star for India, hitting 87 runs and forging a foundational opening partnership with Smriti Mandhana, who made 45.
After their strong work, Deepti Sharma recorded a half-century before she was run out for 58.
No. 7 Richa Ghosh hit a powerful 34 from 24 balls to take India close to 300 and conclude a productive innings.
There was still hope for South Africa, particularly given the form of opener Laura Wolvaardt, who made a superb century and took plenty of deserved plaudits despite defeat.
It was something of a lone stand from the 26-year-old, though, and when she was dismissed by Deepti for 101, South Africa never looked like recovering.
Annerie Dercksen was the Proteas' next-highest scorer with 35, but other key players failed to perform on the big stage.
Anneke Bosch was out for a duck, trapped LBW by Shree Charani, while Marizanne Kapp made just four before she was dismissed by Shafali.
Deepti was exceptional with the ball, taking five wickets to add to her earlier half-century.
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"It has still not sunk in yet and feels like a dream so far," Deepti said. "I am glad that I was able to contribute, and I am very happy about this.
"We always believed in taking positives from every game, and the fans here played a huge part, and without them, it would not be possible.
"My preparation is to enjoy every situation as I enjoy challenges, and today was something similar, both with bat and ball. And to perform as an all-rounder for your team, it doesn't get better than this.
"Laura [Wolvaardt] played really well today, but we were aware that the game was not over and we had to focus on every ball and every over."
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Shafali, meanwhile, added: "I always believed that God sent me here for a reason and I can't put into words how much this moment means to me and all of us.
"It was difficult to transition from T20 cricket to ODI, and I had the full support of my family and friends. Today, it was just a matter of winning and not about getting runs. I had clarity in terms of the plans for today, and we executed them well.
"The senior players were encouraging me to play my natural game.
"It is a very memorable moment for me to have Sachin Tendulkar here to witness this; he is the one who inspired me, and seeing him today inspired all of us."
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