India Women Secure 8-Wicket Victory To Sweep Zimbabwe 3-0 in ODI Series
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
Vaishnavi Sharma Claims Maiden Five-For in ODI Series Finale
India’s women’s national team confirmed our cricket predictions by sealing a clean 3-0 sweep over Zimbabwe, cruising to an eight-wicket victory in the third and final ODI at Vadodara’s BCA Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.
The Women in Blue had also swept the preceding T20I series 3-0!
Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bat, but they struggled to put together any meaningful partnerships against India’s disciplined bowling attack. The visitors lost Loryn Phiri in the second over and only managed 25 runs by the time Beloved Biza was dismissed in the 10th over.
Biza was the first scalp claimed by rising star Vaishnavi Sharma, who went on to dismantle Zimbabwe’s middle-order, dismissing Chiedza Dhururu, Mitchel Mavunga, Nyasha Gwanzura, and Modester Mupachikwa to claim her maiden five-wicket haul in just her third ODI.
Kranti Gaud and Sayali Satghare claimed two wickets apiece for 34 runs combined, while spin sensation Deepti Sharma produced an economical spell, going for just 12 runs in 6.5 overs to help restrict the visitors to a mere 131 runs all out in the 40th over.
After losing Yastika Bhatia on the very first ball of their innings, Pratika Rawal and Harleen Deol navigated India to 59/2 in the ninth over before the latter was dismissed. Rawal and Shafali Verma went on to score half-centuries to secure victory for the Women in Blue with eight wickets in hand and 33 overs to spare.
India Women Rise in World Rankings Following Zimbabwe Series Victory
A number of Indian players have been rewarded for their performances with notable rises in the latest ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings update.
Former team captain Harmanpreet Kaur and experienced all-rounder Deepti Sharma both struck centuries in India’s second ODI match of the series, with their outstanding performances earning them significant rises in the latest limited-overs rankings.
Kaur improved by two spots to move to eighth in the ODI batter rankings, while Sharma gained four spots to jump to 23rd overall on the same list. Sharma also picked up a further two places in the ODI all-rounder rankings to move up to fourth place overall.
India youngster Pratika Rawal achieved a career-best position in the ODI batter rankings, climbing seven places to 21st. Zimbabwe’s Modester Mupachikwa (up five to 39th), Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano (up four to 47th), and Beloved Biza (up 16 to 56th) also made significant progress.
