IND-W Vs SA-W: Indian clinch series with six-wicket win

The Indian women’s team secured a six-wicket victory over South Africa in the 3rd ODI, achieving a perfect 3-0 series sweep after an outstanding performance by the Indian bowlers and a solid batting display from Smriti Mandhana on Sunday.

India started the series with a dominating 143-run win in the first ODI, followed by a high-scoring thriller that they clinched by four runs in the second game.

Mandhana sizzles again

Earlier, after winning the toss and choosing to bat, South Africa stumbled to 215 for the loss of 8 wickets. Despite a solid century opening partnership between captain Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits, disciplined bowling from Arundhati and Deepti Sharma held the Proteas back.

The visitors lost their last 7 wickets while scoring only 113 runs, resulting in a below-par total. Wolvaardt top-scored with 61 off 57 balls, while contributions from De Klerk and Ridders helped South Africa cross the 200-run mark.

Smriti Mandhana spearheaded the Indian chase, scoring 90 runs from 83 balls with 11 boundaries. The improved pitch conditions assisted the Indian effort, allowing the vice-captain to play gracefully and composed.

With this knock, Smriti Mandhana became the first Asian woman to score 300+ runs in a 3-game ODI series. Smriti’s stellar performance was well-supported by contributions from Shafali Verma (25), Priya Punia (28), and Harmanpreet Kaur (42 off 48 balls).

The opening duo managed to add 61 runs in just 11.5 overs, while Priya's 28 runs contributed to a 62-run stand for the second wicket. Harmanpreet's fluent batting, adding 42 runs off 48 balls, further bolstered India's chase as they crossed the mark with relative ease, in just 40.4 overs.

Deepti Sharma was adjudged the Player of the Match for her solid contributions in bowling and fielding, taking 2 wickets for just 27 runs. Smriti Mandhana was awarded the Player of the Tournament for scoring 343 runs, including 2 centuries, narrowly missing out on a well-deserved ton today.

This was the 10th series clean sweep registered by India Women in ODIs and the second against South Africa.

"The last two camps we had (one in Bangalore and one in Mumbai) gave us a lot of confidence. Credit goes to the bowlers, they have been outstanding today," said the Indian skipper. “I tell the bowlers to stick to their strength and just giving them confidence and giving them field placement as they want - all of them, they did well and really happy and really proud that they are improving day by day.”

What next?

India will now play South Africa in a one-off Test starting on June 28th before the three-game T20I series.