India's Women Make History: How They Won Their Maiden Cricket World Cup

India's years-long dream of capturing the ICC Women's World Cup finally came to an end after two heartbreaks in 2005 and 2017 finals, as they defeated South Africa by 52 runs in a clinical performance at the finals, which saw Shafali Sharma (87 and 2/36) and Deepti Sharma (58 and 5/39) delivering all-round performances that would stay imprinted in the minds' of millions and serve as a tale of inspiration for the cricketers of the future.

Suryakumar lauded the Women in Blue for their historic ICC Women's World Cup triumph, saying they have shown the world the power of passion, perseverance, and belief.

"What a historic moment for Indian cricket. Our Women in Blue have shown the world what passion, perseverance and belief can achieve. Congratulations," the 35-year-old wrote on X.

https://x.com/surya_14kumar/status/1985197746400403733

Gill praised the national women's side for their historic ICC Women's World Cup win, lauding their "incredible grit and belief" and saying they have made the entire nation proud.

"Incredible grit and belief from this team. You've made the entire nation proud. Massive congratulations, champions!" the right-hand batter said.

https://x.com/ShubmanGill/status/1985220178825883996

Team India middle-order batter KL Rahul took to Instagram and posted a picture of the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side with a caption, "Champions!! So so proud Team India. You deserve every bit of the glory."

Mem in Blue speedster Jasprit Bumrah also took to Instagram and posted a picture of the Indian Women's Cricket Team with "Champions" written on it.

Team India seamer Mohammad Shami took to his official X handle and congratulated them for winning their maiden title.

"History created. Our women have turned dreams into reality -- lifting the World Cup for India! You didn't just win a trophy, you won a billion hearts. Every Indian is proud of you -- true champions!" the player wrote.

https://x.com/MdShami11/status/1985150333878976958

Coming to 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 SA.

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 the semifinal just a few days back.

However, a game-changing spell from Deepti removed both set batters and had the 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 SA for 246 runs.

- ANI