Deepti Sharma produced a brilliant all-round performance to lift India to its maiden Women’s World Cup title by defeating South Africa in the final in Navi Mumbai on Sunday. The all-rounder was named Player of the Tournament for scoring 215 runs and taking 22 wickets, in which he played a decisive role with both bat and ball. Deepti’s innings in the final came at a crucial time when India needed stability in the middle overs. His patient 58 anchored the innings and helped the team post a competitive score, before he turned the match with the ball, demolishing South Africa’s batting lineup in the chase as he took 5/39 in 9.3 overs.
With her incredible consistency throughout the tournament, Deepti became the first player in Women’s World Cup history to win the title. In nine matches and seven innings, she scored 215 runs at an average of 30.71 and a strike rate of 90.71, including three half-centuries, and her highest score was 58 runs. She was equally brilliant with the ball, finishing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 22 wickets at an average of 24.11, and her best bowling figures were 5/39. Deepti also broke many records during this period. She now holds the record for most wickets by an Indian in a single Women’s World Cup, surpassing Shubhangi Kulkarni’s 20 wickets in the 1981–82 edition and Neetu David’s 20 wickets in the 2005 World Cup. She also became the first Indian to take a five-wicket haul in a Women’s World Cup final.
Overall, Deepti’s performances have placed her among India’s greatest bowlers in World Cup history. She is now the second-highest wicket-taker for India in Women’s World Cup matches with 36 wickets, ahead of only Jhulan Goswami, who has 43 wickets. Diana Edulji is in second place with 31 wickets, while Neetu David and Purnima Rau have 30 wickets each. South Africa won the toss and decided to bowl first. A century partnership between Smriti Mandhana (45 runs from 58 balls with the help of eight fours) and Shefali Verma opened the scoring for India, followed by a 62-run partnership between Shefali (87 runs from 78 balls with the help of seven fours and two sixes) and Jemimah Rodrigues (24 runs from 37 balls with the help of a four). India was at an excellent score of 166/2.