India Clinches Historic Victory at 2025 ICC Women's Cricket World Cup

India Triumphs Over South Africa in World Cup Final

On Sunday, India secured a remarkable 52-run victory against South Africa, claiming the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup title in Navi Mumbai. This victory marks the first World Cup win and the inaugural International Cricket Council title for the senior Indian women's cricket team.

The match commenced with a delay due to rain, and South African captain Laura Wolvaardt won the toss, choosing to bowl first. India started strong, with Shafali Verma contributing 87 runs off 78 balls and Smriti Mandhana adding 45 runs from 58 balls.

Jemimah Rodrigues scored 24 runs, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur contributed 20. Deepti Sharma's impressive half-century and Richa Ghosh's quickfire 34 off 24 balls enabled India to set a target of 299 runs for South Africa.

South Africa also began their innings confidently, but India quickly began to take wickets. Despite Wolvaardt's century, a late effort from Nadine de Klerk was not enough, as South Africa was bowled out for 246 runs.

India had previously finished as runners-up in the 2005 and 2017 tournaments, while South Africa had reached the semi-finals in 2000, 2017, and 2022. Notably, this final was the first in which neither Australia nor England, the two most dominant teams in women's cricket, participated.

Path to the Final

The tournament, which kicked off on September 30, saw India defeating Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but they faced losses against South Africa, Australia, and England. A crucial victory against New Zealand ensured their progression to the knockout stage, although their final group match against Bangladesh was abandoned due to rain.

India's semi-final win against Australia on Thursday was historic, as they chased down a target of 339, led by a century from Jemimah Rodrigues, marking the highest chase in women's One Day Internationals.

Conversely, South Africa began their campaign with a heavy 10-wicket defeat to England but bounced back with victories over New Zealand, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. They suffered a loss to Australia before defeating England by 125 runs in the semi-final.