Exactly a year ago, the Indian women’s team created history by lifting its first-ever ODI World Cup trophy after beating South Africa by 52 runs at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.
It was the then captain Harmanpreet Kaur’s catch to get the dangerous Nadine de Klerk out in the 46th over which sealed the deal for the Women in Blue.
Shafali Verma was adjudged the Player of the Match in the final for her 78-ball 87 and two wickets, while all-rounder Deepti Sharma took the Player of the Tournament award for her 215 runs and 22 wickets in the edition.
India vs South Africa, Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 Final — Match report
On the eve of the final, a reporter asked India captain Harmanpreet Kaur how she would celebrate if her side won the World Cup.
“For big occasions, you don’t have to plan anything because we have visualised it and dreamt about it so many times. It’s only about what you remember and what comes out when it happens,” she gushed with a big smile on her face.
A little over 24 hours later, with a capacity crowd carrying the team in its chants and prayers well past midnight, the Indian women’s team created history as it beat South Africa by 52 runs in the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 final to clinch its maiden ICC crown.
Chasing a stiff 299-run target, Laura Wolvaardt knew she needed to be the backbone of the fight.
While Wolvaardt looked solid, India sank its teeth into the batting order at the other end, sending a shaky Tazmin Brits back within the PowerPlay. Shafali Verma, an inspired bowling change, repaid her captain’s faith stunningly, dismissing Sune Luus off her second ball in World Cup cricket.
A delighted Harmanpreet leapt into Shafali’s arms as the 21-year-old carried her captain around the wicket in celebration.She would go on to remove her Delhi Capitals teammate Marizanne Kapp as well, who, in all likelihood, has played her last ODI World Cup. Desperate for partners, Wolvaardt found an ally in Annerie Dercksen, whose spirited six-hitting eased the frayed South African nerves.
Wolvaardt slowly brought up a second consecutive hundred, a knock of the highest quality under immense pressure.
Any joy was short-lived as Deepti Sharma’s onslaught began.
A scintillating fifer followed, starting with the prized scalp of Wolvaardt before cleaning up a tail struggling to survive.It came down to 53 runs needed from the last five overs, with the boisterous crowd watching along bated breath. Nadine de Klerk waged a lone battle with South Africa, left with just one wicket in hand to add to the jeopardy. She would have hoped to repeat her heroics from the league stage, but it was too tall a mountain to climb.
Who said what after the title win
“We have been talking about this for many years — we’ve been playing good cricket, but we had to win one big tournament.
Without that, we couldn’t talk about change. At the end of the day, fans and the audience want to see their favourite team win. It’s not that we weren’t playing good cricket, but we were waiting badly for this moment, and today we got a chance to live it.”Harmanpreet Kaur“Every World Cup we go in, there have been heartbreaks. We always believed that we had a bigger role in women’s cricket. I don’t know how to explain the last 40 days, but to end it with a World Cup, I’ll take those 45 days of not sleeping every night.”Smriti Mandhana
“It’s a watershed moment in Indian cricket. Not just women’s cricket, in Indian cricket. The stadium was packed today, but beyond that, I don’t know how many crores of people must have watched on TV and gotten inspired in some way. I just met a little girl, a 3-4-year-old girl, whose inspiration is Harman (Harmanpreet Kaur). She follows Harman wherever she goes. So, there you go. The more you have these kinds of days, the more inspired people get.”Amol MuzumdarHead coach
