KUALA LUMPUR: India bagged back-to-back ICC women’s Under-19 T20 World Cup titles after they thrashed South Africa by nine wickets in the finals courtesy of Trisha Gongadi brilliant all-round performance at the Bayuemas Oval on Sunday.
South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first which turned out to be a wrong decision at the end. The Proteas batters struggled throughout the innings in front of Indian bowling.
Parunika Sisodia made early inroad, dismissing opener Simone Lourens for a golden duck, while Shabnam followed with the vital wicket of the dangerous Jemma Botha, leaving South Africa in tatters at 20/2 by the end of the 4th over.
After losing their openers early, South Africa stumbled further when Aayushi Sharma removed Diara Ramlakan leaving South Africa at 29/3 by the end of the powerplay.
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However, a rescue effort from captain Kayla Reyneke and Karabo Meso steadied the innings, but both were dismissed in consecutive overs.
The Indian bowlers took advantage of the early wickets and never let South Africa recover. The whole team was bundled out for just 82 runs.
Gongadi Trisha was the star of the show, taking three wickets. Aayushi Shukla also contributed with bowling figures of 2-9 which included two maidens as well while Vaishnavi Sharma and Shabnam played a vital part with two and one wicket, respectively.
In reply, India started strongly with both openers adding 36 runs in four overs. Kayla Reyneke dismissed G Kamalini (8) courtesy of a brilliant catch from Simone Lourens.
Meanwhile, Trisha Gongadi continued her outstanding batting run, scoring an unbeaten 44 off 33 balls which included eight fours. She along with Sanika Chalke (26) guided India to a comfortable win in 11.2 overs, claiming the ICC Women’s Under-19 World Cup title for the second time.
Gongadi was awarded the Player of the Match and Series for his outstanding all-round performance in the tournament. The young sensation played a vital role in India’s triumph in the tournament by scoring 309 runs in seven matches and bagging seven wickets.
For the unversed, India had won the title in the inaugural edition in 2023 held in South Africa after beating England by seven wickets in the final.
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