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Former India captain Mithali Raj was full of emotion and pride as India lifted their maiden ICC Women's World Cup trophy after defeating South Africa in a thrilling final on Sunday.
"I am just going to give them a hug. The way they have made a comeback in this World Cup was amazing," she noted. At one point, the team had lost three games on the trot, leading to questions about their chances of even qualifying for the semifinals. However, under the leadership of Amol Muzumdar and the resilience of the players, India staged a remarkable turnaround. They not only secured their spot in the knockouts but went all the way to win the final and clinch their first-ever Women's World Cup title. "I am just very happy and emotional that India has finally won the World Cup. That is something we all had been waiting for years, and finally we got to see that," Mithali said after the match. South Africa won the toss and opted to bowl first. A century partnership between Smriti Mandhana (45 in 58 balls, with eight fours) and Shafali Verma kick-started things for India, followed by another 62-run stand between Shafali (87 in 78 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) and Jemimah Rodrigues (24 in 37 balls, with a four). India was at a fine platform of 166/2. A 52-run stand between skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (20 in 29 balls, with two fours) and Deepti Sharma took India beyond the 200-run mark. A final flourish by Deepti (58 in 58 balls, with three fours and a six) and Richa Ghosh (34 in 24 balls, with three fours and two sixes) helped India reach 298/7 in their 50 overs. Ayabonga Khaka (3/58) was the leading wicket-taker for South Africa. During the run-chase, a fifty-run stand started things for SA, with Tazmin Brits (23 in 35 balls, with two fours and a six) being the first victim. Eventually, despite skipper Laura Wolvaardt's dominance, the golden arms of Shafali Verma (2/36) and Shree Charani reduced SA to 148/5. Wolvaardt had a 61-run stand for the sixth-wicket with Annerie Dercksen (37 in 35 balls, with a four and two sixes), which slowly started to rebuild pressure on India. Wolvaardt (101 in 98 balls, with 11 fours and a six) continued her red-hot form, bringing up her century after having registered 169 against England in semifinal just a few days back. However, a game-changing spell from Deepti removed both set batters and had Proteas struggling at 221/8. She became the first Indian woman with a WC final four-fer. Deepti (5/39) eventually managed to convert it into a fiver, as India made history to win their maiden WC title by bundling out South Africa for 246 runs. (ANI)
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