END OF INNINGS: South Africa 89/7 in 17 Overs;
India wins by 51 runs and clinches the five-match series 2-0 . Vastrakar gives away just one run in the final over which underlines India's performance today as it has outplayed South Africa in every department.
SA needs 54 from the final over, 3 wickets in hand
Pooja Vastrakar to bowl the final over.
Overs 14.5, SA needs 56 from 13 balls with 3 wickets in hand
OUT! Ismail goes for the big shot as she tries to clear the long-off fielder, however it is straight at Deepti Sharma who takes an easy catch.
Overs 13.3, SA needs 67 from 21 balls with 4 wickets in hand
Opener Tazmin Brits finally departs for 20 off 23 balls, as she misses Deepti's off-spinner completely and is clean-bowled.
Overs 12.5, South Africa 72/5
SA CAPTAIN DEPARTS! The South Africans have failed to decipher Poonam Yadav looping deliveries. This time it is Sune Luus who steps out of the crease for a sweep shot and misses it completely as keeper Taniya Bhatiya coolly takes off the bails.
Overs 11, South Africa 65/4
Dot ball! The required rate climbed over 13 now. South Africa's skipper Sune Luus walks in.
Overs 10.5, South Africa 65/4
POONAM ON HAT-TRICK! Poonam sets up de Klerk with a tempting short-pitch ball and then bowls a looping delivery. The batter goes for the sweep shot but only manages to edge it to Shafali at extra-cover. The new batswoman Mignon du Preez is caught out by Veda Krishnamurthy at long-on.
Overs 9, South Africa 60/2
A couple of loose balls from skipper Harmanpreet gifts two boundaries to Brits, who will look to anchor the innings from now on.
Overs 8, South Africa 49/2
OUT! Wolvhaardt had to go after Radha Yadav and it worked in India's favour. She heaves towards the leg-side but gets a outside edge towards point where Jemimah takes a superb catch with her back towards the ball.
Over 7, South Africa 42/1
Poonam Yadav gives away a boundary off the first ball, but has Wolvaardt struggling with her sweep on the next four deliveries. The required rate for the visitor is over the 10 now.
Overs 6, South Africa 36/1
Harmanpreet Kaur is in the attack and she restricts the runflow a bit. Its spin from both ends as Poonam Yadav is introduced into the attack.
Overs 4, South Africa 27/1
13 from the over! Shikha Pandey bowls five wides on the second ball but is unfortunate as Wolvaardt's thick edge runs away to the boundary behind the keeper on the next ball. She bowls another short-pitched ball which is hit for a four over the point.
Overs 1.5, South Africa 10/1
RUN-OUT! Lee nudges it towards the off-side but there is no run. Wicket-keeper Taniya Bhatia spills the throw from Deepti Sharma. Lee is halfway down the pitch but is sent back by her partner. Pooja Vastrakar at backward-point picks and hits the stumps in one swift motion.
Overs 1, South Africa 5/0
Deepti is getting assistance from the pitch as the off-spinner hits Lee's pads, but it was missing the leg-stump.
Overs 0.3, South Africa 4/0
FOUR! Deepti bowls short-pitched delivery outside off-stump and its too easy for Lee who whacks it over backward-point for a boundary.
South Africa openers Lizelle Lee and Tazmin Brits are out in the middle to begin the chase. As Harmanpreet Kaur starts with her premier spinner Deepti Sharma.
END OF INNINGS - Target: 141 (17 Overs)
Overs 17, India 140/4
Butter Fingers! The innings ends just how it had started. Pooja Vastrakar is not in control of her shot on the final ball which is straight at Sekhukhune at mid-wicket, who lets the ball slip through her fingers. The Indians run two in the meanwhile.
Overs 16.3, India 136/4
Ismail bowls tighter lines and uses the short-pitched delivery to give away just three singles.
Overs 16.1, India 133/4
FOUR! Ismail goes for a short-pitched ball as Deepti waits until the end and guides it over the third-man boundary. Smart cricket from the left-hander.
Overs 16, India 129/4
OUT! Khakha piles pressure on the Indians with two dot balls but Jemimah finds a way to find a boundary. However, she misses Khakha's good-length ball which rattles the stumps.
Overs 15, India 124/3
Luus brings back Ismail back in the attack and she gives away just six runs to bring down the scoring. South Africa's field spreads out as it looks to prevent boundaries.
Overs 14, India 118/3
Jemimah is turning on the style. She first hits Khakha for a four over mid-off, then hits the pacer for another boundary with an elegant cover-drive. A total of 13 runs come from the over.
Overs 12.4, India 100/3
New batter Deepti Sharma heaves over the extra-cover as Mlaba dives in for a catch. But the ball slips through her hands for a boundary. Hundred up for the host.
Overs 10.5, India 89/3
OUT! Harmanpreet's cameo comes to an end! She goes for a sweep shot over deep mid-wicket off Nadine de Klerk's bowling but is straight to Tumi Sekhukhune who takes a comfortable catch.
Overs 10, India 86/2
While her teammates have suffered, Harmanpreet is batting on a different level. She hits Mlaba for a six and two fours and then dissects the off-side field with a stylish cut-shot for a boundary.
Overs 9, India 70/2
And the skipper is off the mark in style! A beautiful leg-glance from Haramanpreet results in a four.
Harmanpreet is the next batter at the crease!
Overs 8.2, India 65/2
OUT! Jemimah survives a run-out scare thanks to a fielding mix-up. But Shafali runs out of good fortune at the other end as she plays Tumi Sekhukhune's delivery on to the stumps.
Overs 8.1, India 64/1
SIX! South Africa's fielding has been pedestrian at best today. Shafali Verma goes for the mid-wicket boundary and Laura Wolvaardt, standing on the ropes, spills it over the boundary. Shafali moves to 46.
Jemimah at the crease!
Overs 7, India 52/1
OUT! Smriti runs of luck! She tries to clear the in-field but hits it straight to Mignon du Preez at backward-point. Jemimah Rodrigues walks in at No 3.
Over 6.2, India 48/0
THE SMRITI-FACTOR! The opener is carrying luck with her. She goes for a big shot on the off-side but doesn't time it well but the long-off fielder is unable hold on to the running catch.
Over 6, India 43/0
SIX! First six of the match comes off Shafali's bat. Luus goes for a slider but loses the grip on the ball completely. Its an easy full-toss for Shafali who smokes it over the mid-wicket boundary for a maximum.
Overs 5.1, India 31/0
End of PowerPlay and South Africa introduces spin with captain Sune Luus joining the attack. She bowls one right in the blockhole to Shafali for a dot ball.
Overs 3.5, India 20/0
DROPPED ONCE AGAIN! South Africa cannot catch a break. Mandhana is not comfortable in the middle as she skies the ball once again. The bowler Khakha is unable to judge a simple return catch and the Indians get away with poor shot-selection again.
Overs: 3.3, India 19/0
DROPPED AGAIN! Mandhana gets another life gifted by South African fielders. She is unable to middle Ismail's ball pitched on the middle stump. Nadine de Klerk drops a sitter this time.
Overs: 3, India 15/0
Mandhana tries to go on the leg-side but misses twice. This is a decent start from India. Two more overs of PowerPlay to go.
Overs: 2.4, India 14/0
FREE-HIT! Ismail's front foot slides over the crease and the umpire awards India a free-hit. However, Shafali Verma is unable to make the most of it and its just a single.
Overs: 2, India 11/0
FOUR! Mandhana gets going! She dances down the pitch and hits the bowler through mid-off for her first boundary of the match.
Overs: 1.4, India 6/0
DROPPED! The Indian openers have luck on their side today. Verma tries to clear the mid-off but manages to send the ball high up in the air. Lara Goodall is standing under the ball, but she makes a mess of it.
Overs: 1.1, India 5/0
FOUR! Ayabongo Khakha is in the attack and Verma slashes hard at the ball pitches on the off-stump. The ball takes takes a thick outside and runs away for the third man boundary.
Overs: 1, India 1/0
Mandhana plays out the rest of the over as India is off to a nervy start. There is still moisture on the pitch which will trouble the batters.
Overs: 0.3, India 1/0
LUKCY ESCAPE! Smriti Mandhana gets a top-edge as she is surprised by Ismail's slow bouncer. However, the bowler is unable to get to the ball and Mandhana survives.
Overs: 0.1, India 0/0
First ball, pitched outside off-stump. Verma swings hard at it but its out of her reach. There is a slight hint of movement but Ismail is more bothered about the running area which still is slippery.
Shabnam Ismail will spearhead the South African pace attack. Here we go!
The players are out on the field as Indian openers Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana take guard. The Indian flags are out and waving!
Teams:
TOSS : South Africa captain Sune Luus chooses to bowl.
Here we go! The captains Harmanpreet Kaur and Sune Luus walk out for the Toss.
We have some good news from P.K. Ajith Kumar to brighten your sombre mood
"We will have the toss at 7.30 p.m. and it will be a 17-overs-a-side affair, starting at 8 p.m. The announcement over the public address system has just been received with loud applause from the huge, patient crowd."
Our correspondent P.K. Ajith Kumar at Surat says:
"Good evening from a surprisingly dry -- pun unintended – Surat. After the rainy last few days, today has been bright and sunny mostly and we could expect some cricket eventually, a full match even – notwithstanding the discouraging weather forecast -- though the start is likely to be delayed a bit. The umpires have just come out, even as the ground staff is getting the ground ready: the outfield has been an area of concern.
There is a big crowd eagerly waiting for the match to start. Two days ago, they had to return disappointed after the third match of the series was washed out, without a ball being bowled. They could go home tonight in a much happier frame of mind..... hopefully."
The Toss has been delayed due to wet outfield as the crowd at Lalabhai Contractor Stadium eagerly awaits a start to the match.
Squads:
South Africa Women: Lizelle Lee(w), Tazmin Brits, Laura Wolvaardt, Nadine de Klerk, Sune Luus(c), Lara Goodall, Nondumiso Shangase, Anne Bosch, Ayabonga Khaka, Shabnim Ismail, Mignon du Preez, Sinalo Jafta, Tumi Sekhukhune, Nonkululeko Mlaba
India Women : Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Veda Krishnamurthy, Deepti Sharma, Taniya Bhatia(w), Shikha Pandey, Radha Yadav, Arundhati Reddy, Poonam Yadav, Anuja Patil, Mansi Joshi, Pooja Vastrakar, Harleen Deol
Discouraging forecast
Both the teams would be desperate for the sun to come out and dry up the wet outfield in time of the fourth T20I. Things, however, didn’t look particularly promising on Monday, when both the sides were forced to cancel their training sessions because of the wet outfield. A prolonged spell of sunshine could brighten up the chances of play, though the forecast isn’t overly encouraging, with the depression expected to move towards Surat from Surendranagar.
If the weather doesn’t turn out to be as depressing as feared, one could expect some sparkling cricket from these two spirited groups. The teams are in desperate need of a few competitive matches with the T20 World Cup in Australia just five months away.
The series had been set up rather nicely, too, with a keenly-contested opening match. Before India romped home by 11 runs in a low-scoring encounter, Mignon du Preez had played a magnificently fighting knock to raise hopes of an unlikely victory for South Africa.
It was the Indian spinners, spearheaded by off-spinner Deepti Sharma, who turned things around for the women in blue after what had seemed an inadequate display with the bat. The crowd was also entertained by some dazzling strokes from Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandana and Jemimah Rodrigues. The city’s international debut was splendid. Little could it have imagined it would have to wait quite a while for a second game.
Where to watch?
The match will be telecast live on on Star Sports 3 and Star Sports 3 HD . It will also be live streamed on Hotstar .
Comments
SHARE