After India’s historic victory over South Africa in the Women’s Cricket World Cup, Sky Sports Cricket’s Nasser Hussain reflects on a victory that could turn India into an “unstoppable force”.
This was India’s first World Cup win and many believe it could bring about dramatic changes in the sport.
After losing the toss and being forced to bat at the DY Patil Stadium, India managed to dismiss South Africa for 246 despite some fine work with the bat from captain Laura Wolvaardt (101 balls) after Shafali Verma top-scored with 87 off 78 balls to take them to 298-7.
Hussain had said throughout the tournament that India’s victory could change the game in sports, but India were on the brink after their sensational victory over Australia in the semi-finals.
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Nasser Hussain reflects on India’s sensational victory over South Africa in the Women’s Cricket World Cup final
Significant changes in sports are now a reality.
“Previous Women’s World Cups have featured either England or Australia or both, so I think it’s great for the game to have a new winner,” Hussain said.
“Indian women’s cricket, a sleeping giant, is well and truly awake and has the potential to become an unstoppable force.”
How did India achieve victory?
There are many factors to victory, but for Hussain, India have grown towards this moment, with the form of the players, the crowd and the growth of the WPL all playing a role.
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Harmanpreet Kaur takes a brilliant catch and sees his team become Cricket World Cup champions
“The way the WPL and this cricket team have played over the last few years was already moving in that direction. They just needed this tournament tonight to kind of settle that agreement.”
“The crowd was great and the team was great. We had a little hiccup in the middle of the tournament, but we started well and finished well. At the end of the day, we had too many players in good form compared to South Africa.”
“If you look at India’s line-up, there were a lot of players who were in pretty good shape by the end of the tournament. Unfortunately for South Africa, especially with the bat, they relied heavily on one or two players and that’s why they had to play an extra batsman.”
“Fair play to South Africa, they themselves played a lot of great cricket. As we have seen in this part of the world, India were just too strong. They are a very difficult team to beat in any format, male or female.”
“Living the dream”: From injured sub to star
One of the stories that stood out in the final was Verma, who entered the tournament midway through the tournament as a substitute for Pratika Rawal, who had initially withdrawn due to injury.
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Watch India go wild in the Women’s Cricket World Cup final as South Africa drop two key players.
In the final, not only did she score a brilliant 87 with the bat, but the part-time bowler also took two wickets to complete her redemption arc.
“She started[her career]in an incredible way. She came on the scene and was crushing everyone, and she had that carefree attitude that she had when she was younger,” Hussain continued.
“Then she got a bit exposed – especially with the short balls – leading the batting. People were going at her with the short balls and in this format, she had to be left out.”
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Nadeem de Klerk and Deepti Sharma had a painful collision when the South African bowler jumped while trying to take the wicket of Amanjot Kaur.
“Then Pratika Rawal was injured but she came back and I actually thought it was a bit of a gamble to pick her for the semi-finals and then the final, but she played great.
“Her batting was great and her bowling was genius. I don’t know where it came from, but they bowled her and she was outstanding. It was a really good choice and it was really good to see her come back and play like she should.”
India impress under pressure
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Australia captain Alyssa Healy drops a sitter in Navi Mumbai, giving Jemima Rodrigues a life of 82 as the World Cup holders are eliminated in the semi-finals.
It was the details in the Indian team that proved the difference in the final, with Deepti Sharma once again showing her class with an impressive 58 with the bat and 5-39 with the ball.
They learned from the pressure of losing three straight in the group stage and coped with the pressure of coming out on top despite the noise around them.
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Jemima Rodriguez gave an emotional interview after scoring 127 against Australia and helping India reach the ICC Women’s World Cup final.
“They pretty much cover all the bases. They’ve got quality seams, they’ve got quality spin, they’re backed up. I mean, Jemima Rodriguez is setting the tone for diving down the field.”
“I thought they handled the pressure well. Everyone talks about the pressure of coming here and dealing with this cauldron representing South Africa, but really as the home team, as different teams in India know, we’re under pressure.”
“If we lose this, we will go from heroes to zeros in this part of the world in no time and tomorrow we will be vilified. It was a big moment for them, especially Harmanpreet Kaur, because they will lose again in the final.”
“When they lost the three games in the middle, some questions were asked about Harmanpreet’s captaincy. So to see her pull the team away, take catches and run away was huge.”
