India clinches the inaugural ICC Women’s U19 T20 World Cup, defeats England by 7 wickets in the final
Shefali Verma & Co. created history in South Africa by winning the inaugural U19 Women’s T20 World Cup. The big match at Senwes Park, Potchefstroom was an easy affair for the young brigade as they won the battle by 7 wickets.
Indian team bowled England out for 68, thanks to Titas Sadhu’s outstanding spell of 2 wickets for just six runs in her four overs. Other bowlers including Parshavi Chopra and Mannat Kashyap were also economical, which helped India put England in the backseat.
Chasing a meagre target of just 69, the Women in Blue lost their captain Shefali Verma early but G Trisha and Soumya Tiwari built a solid partnership to guide India home. Shefali Verma, who is already a member of the senior squad, scripted history by winning the title under her leadership.
Sadhu for her exceptional bowling was awarded the player of the match trophy whereas the player of the series award went to England’s Grace Scrivens for her outstanding effort with the bat. Scrivens scored 293 runs in 7 games at a decent average of around 42.
India’s journey in the tournament
The opening battle against the hosts South Africa was a tough task for the Asian giant but they achieved a phenomenal victory by chasing a big total of 167 in just 16.3 overs. Sensational batting from Shweta Sehrawat was the key to this success as she scored a magnificent 92 runs off just 57 balls. Shefali Verma also scored a quick 45 off just 16 deliveries.
The next battle against UAE was the easiest one of this tournament with India scoring 219 runs in their 20 overs. In reply, the UAE could only manage to score 97, giving India a victory by 122 runs. Both Shweta and Shefali once again became the stars of this game.
Shefali Verma in action during the recently concluded U19 Women’s T20 World Cup
The next group match against Scotland was not good when it came to batting. India could only score 149 in their complete quota of overs but fabulous spells from Archana Devi and Mannat Kashyap powered India to a glorious victory by 83 runs.
After all these victories, it was time for the Super Six stage where India had to face Australia. The blue brigade after batting first was all-out for just 87 which was not enough in any format. The Australians chased it down in the 14th over to script a victory.
Now, India was desperate in search of a victory and when they were next facing Sri Lanka, the team did not disappoint their fans even once. They restrict Lankans to just 59 in their innings, which they achieved quite easily in the eighth over.
The semifinal against New Zealand was on everyone’s mind because of the record against the Kiwis in the knockouts. But it seemed like the Indian girls didn’t know about the history as they thrashed New Zealand by 8 wickets to enter the finals. Shweta Sehrawat and Parshavi Chopra were the top performers in batting and bowling respectively.