Brief Scores: South Africa (161/4 in 19.1 overs) beat India (158/7) by 6 wickets at Old Trafford, Manchester

India vs South Africa: highlighted | Achievement:

Marijne Kapp made India pay a heavy price as they suffered their first defeat in the Women’s T20 World Cup. After strong wins over Netherlands and Pakistan, India lost by six wickets as South Africa held their composure in a thrilling encounter at Old Trafford, Manchester. After the powerplay in the Proteas innings, it looked like India would again overwhelm the opponent with spin in the middle overs, but Cap had other ideas.

Radha Yadav dismissed Kapp twice and the South African all-rounder played a brilliant inning of unbeaten 81 runs in 45 balls with the help of seven fours and four sixes. Kapp also impressed with the ball before putting in a match-winning batting performance.

After this defeat, India needs a strong result against Australia to secure a place in the semi-finals. If India does not win this match then it may have to be out of the tournament. It should not be forgotten that Bangladesh is also putting huge pressure on India’s neck with two wins.

Harmanpreet Kaur played her 200th Women’s T20 match and became the first cricketer to reach the milestone, but could not celebrate the victory. Meanwhile, South Africa have made a strong comeback after an early loss to Australia with consecutive wins over Pakistan and India.

India started strong, but Proteas made a comeback

India’s innings got off to a great start thanks to Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma, who attacked South Africa’s strong pace pair of Marizanne Kapp and Shabnim Ismail. While Mandhana started cautiously, she soon found her rhythm and put the bowlers under pressure by hitting two excellent fours off Ismail.

At the other end, Shafali was in destructive mood, combining powerful drives, sweeps and fearless strokeplay to keep the scoreboard moving at a fast pace. The pair dominated the powerplay, helping India score 50 runs in just 4.2 overs and reach 59 runs in the first six overs.

Shafali, in particular, looked unstoppable as she scored 31 runs in just 15 balls, while Mandhana’s positive start ensured that India seized the early initiative.

However, South Africa made a comeback through their experienced seamers. Cap cleverly changed the angle to deceive Mandhana and bowled her out for 17 after missing a scoop attempt.

Soon after, Ismail’s short-ball strategy paid off as Shafali was caught behind trying to avoid a rising delivery. The speed of the ball made the wicket even more remarkable, with a speed of 122.66 km/h, the fastest ball of the tournament so far.

The dismissal of both the openers halted India’s momentum and after India’s strong start, South Africa got a chance to make a comeback in the contest.

South Africa peg back to India

South Africa did an excellent job of pulling the game back after India’s explosive powerplay by putting the batsmen under constant pressure in the middle and death overs. After conceding runs in the first six overs, the Proteas responded with disciplined bowling and timely wickets, but never allowed India to build a big partnership.

Yastika Bhatia, promoted to No. 3, managed just 15 runs, while Jemimah Rodrigues struggled to find her rhythm and was out after scoring 12 runs.

Harmanpreet Kaur looked set to carry the innings forward despite a slight fitness concern, but Shabnim Ismail made a crucial breakthrough by dismissing the Indian skipper for 24 with a clever off-cutter. That wicket shifted the momentum strongly in South Africa’s favour.

Although Deepti Sharma (29) and Richa Ghosh (15) briefly threatened to mount a late charge, just as the partnership was gaining momentum, South Africa struck again. Nonkululeko Mlaba deceived Deepti with a slower delivery, while Marizanne Kapp removed Richa with another disguised change of pace.

Regular fall of wickets prevented India from gaining momentum in the final overs. Despite all of India’s top seven batsmen reaching double figures, none managed to score a half-century as South Africa’s bowlers skilfully controlled the middle and death stages to restrict India to 158.

Ismail and Kapp were the best bowlers, taking two wickets each for just 55 runs in their combined eight overs.

Charnani took India to the top

Sri Charani completely transformed the contest with a sensational spell that put India firmly on top after a tight, disciplined powerplay. India had already started well, with Shafali Verma making a bold strategic move to take the new ball, supported by a good start from Nandini Sharma, who kept South Africa calm.

Proteas openers, Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Britts got off to a cautious start. Wolvaardt pushed the pace for a while, but India kept him in check in the first four overs, conceding only 19 runs as the batsmen struggled to break free.

That pressure set the stage perfectly for Charani, who came in and immediately changed the game. He was the first to dismiss Wolvaardt and mistimed a shot as the South African captain went straight back to the bowler for a sharp return catch. Wolvaardt continued to struggle in the tournament after another failure.

Charani struck again soon after, removing Anne Dirksen for a duck with drift, dip and sharp turn as the batsman was completely beaten and bowled. The double blow reduced South Africa’s score to 25 runs for 2 wickets and it strongly changed the course of India.

Many more to follow…

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