There were 33 runs left in the last four overs. England had 7 wickets. Many could not believe that India could win from this situation. But every member of the Harmanpreet Kaur-led team had the belief to win. Sneh Rana, Smriti Mandhana was desperate to fight to the end and bring one more medal to the country. Smriti confirmed the medal by taking the team to the final. Batting first, India scored 164 runs after losing five wickets. Courtesy Smriti’s innings of 61 runs from 32 balls. In reply, England was stuck at 160-6. India won by four runs.
Details of the breathtaking match
Deepti Sharma came to bowl the 17th over for India. Still, thirty-three runs were left. Deepti tested the opposition batters with just three runs. In the 18th over too, Harmanpreet gave the ball to off-spinner Sneh Rana. Both the right-handed batters of the opposition were settled on the wicket. But their weakness against Indian spinners was showing every moment. England captain Natalie Sciver’s extra slow batting became a thorn in her team’s side.
Along with that, the tendency of England’s wicket throwing on their ground proved to be dangerous to themselves. Only three runs came in the 18th over too. The fate of the match changed there. 13 runs came in the 19th over but Sciver was run out in the last ball. Scored 41 runs off 43 balls. Sneh secured the victory with just nine runs in the over.
The two off-spinners instilled confidence in the Indian camp to win. Sneh took two wickets for 28 runs in four overs. But Smriti Mandhana’s aggressive batting put England under pressure at the start of the match. Smriti finished her 50 runs in only 23 balls. Which is the fastest as an Indian. Shefali Verma was batting with her at that time. Whose run had not yet crossed ten? Smriti’s aggressive innings put the opposition under pressure right from the start. She finished the innings with 61 runs off 32 balls.
Hit eight fours and three sixes. Shefali (15), and Harmanpreet (20) started well but could not turn it into big innings. Jemaima Rodrigues and Deepti helped India increase their runs towards the end. Batting at number three, Jemaima remained unbeaten on 44 runs off 31 balls. Deepti scored 22 runs off twenty balls. Thanks to them, India crossed the target of 160 runs.
Smriti’s comment
Not only in batting or bowling but also in fielding on this day i.e., last August 6, India showed more brilliance than the two teams. The opposition batters got a total of three runs out. This proves that the Sciver team could not get runs easily. After the match, Smriti said, “I still can’t believe that we have reached the final. It will take a few more hours to get used to it. There will be some celebration back at the hotel. But I want to win the final and return with the gold.”