India Women made it two wins in two matches, defeating Pakistan Women by 88 runs in the 6th match of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025, played on Sunday (5th October) at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Chasing 248 to win did not seem easy, as India made early inroads by dismissing both openers inside the first 10 overs. Meanwhile, the scoring rate slowed down significantly for Pakistan, with only 25 runs on the board.
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Muneeba Ali was the first to depart, her run-out dismissal sparking controversy for Pakistan. India had appealed for LBW, and a direct hit came at the striker’s end. Muneeba had grounded her bat in the crease, and the on-field call was not out. However, the third umpire reviewed the run-out and ruled her out, as the bat was in the air when the ball hit the stumps.
According to the law, a batter isn’t out of her ground if she’s running or diving and loses contact after crossing the crease. Since Muneeba wasn’t running or diving, she was given out.
After being 26 for 3, Sidra Amin and Natalia Pervaiz tried to revive the chase as they shared a useful half-century stand. A 69-run partnership off 96 balls came to an end when Pervaiz was dismissed for 33, becoming the third victim of Kranti Gaud. Soon after, Pakistan lost their fifth wicket at 102, with Fatima Sana perishing for just 2 runs.
Amin went on to score a fifty and also added another 41 runs with Sidra Nawaz. Once that partnership was broken, India made light work to close out the innings quickly. Amin fought hard with a brilliant 81, which included nine fours and a six. Apart from her and Pervaiz, no Pakistani batter managed to reach the 20-run mark as they were bundled out for 159.
On the bowling front, Kranti Gaud took 3 for 20 in her full quota of 10 overs, including three maidens. Sneh Rana and Deepti Sharma were also impressive in the middle overs, sharing five wickets between them.
Earlier, Pakistan opted to bowl first after winning the toss. Both sides made one change each, as India brought Renuka Thakur into the side replacing Amanjot Kaur, who was unwell, while Sadaf Shamas came in for Omaima Sohail at the top of the order for Pakistan.
Runs came thick and fast at the start as India raced to 45 in the first 8 overs without losing a wicket. But once they lost Smriti Mandhana, the innings slowed down a bit. It was skipper Fatima Sana who got the big wicket of the left-handed opener for 23, as the opening stand ended at 48. Pratika Rawal was bowled for 31 after being undone by left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal. Harmanpreet Kaur’s stay at the crease did not last long as she was caught behind off the bowling of Diana Baig.
Pakistan had the opportunity to restrict India to 117 for 4 when Jemimah Rodrigues, on 2, was caught behind, but replays showed that Baig had overstepped. She and Harleen Deol added 45 runs before India lost both batters within the space of 11 balls. Deol fell just 4 runs short of her fifty.
Sneh Rana was promoted ahead of Richa Ghosh and, along with Deepti Sharma, guided India past the 200-run mark. However, against the run of play, both batters fell in quick succession, leaving India 7 down for 203 with less than 5 overs remaining.
However, keeper-batter Richa Ghosh provided the perfect finishing touches for Team India, almost taking them to the 250-run mark. She smashed an unbeaten 35 off just 20 balls, as India were eventually bowled out, losing two wickets off the last two deliveries.
With those two wickets, Baig finished with a 4-wicket haul despite being expensive. Skipper Sana was impressive with the ball as she picked up two wickets for 39 runs, including two maidens in her 10-over spell.
After 34 overs of India’s innings, there was a 15-minute break following a distraction caused by bugs, and pest control spray was used to make the conditions better.
Brief Scores:
India Women – 247 (50) Harleen Deol 46, Richa Ghosh 35*, Jemimah Rodrigues 32, Pratika Rawal 31, Diana Baig 4/69, Fatima Sana 2/38, Sadia Iqbal 2/47
Pakistan Women – 159 (43) Sidra Amin 81, Natalia Pervaiz 33, Kranti Gaud 3/20, Deepti Sharma 3/45, Sneh Rana 2/38
India Women won by 88 Runs.
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