 "Jemimah Rodrigues and Amanjot Kaur celebrate after guiding India to a five-wicket victory over Australia in the second semi-final of the 2025 ICC Women's World Cup in Navi Mumbai. Reuters")
Hometown hero Jemimah Rodrigues produced the knock of a lifetime with an unbeaten 127 as India pulled off a record chase against mighty Australia to advance to the ICC Women’s World Cup final. Defending champions Australia appeared to have one foot in the final after posting a mammoth 338 on the board, thanks to Phoebe Litchfield’s superb 119 along with half-centuries from Ellyse Perry (77) and Ashleigh Gardner (65).
The Women in Blue then faced the prospect of suffering a second defeat in as many meetings against the Alyssa Healy-led side after losing openers Shafali Verma (10) and Smriti Mandhana (24) inside the powerplay, both getting dismissed by Kim Garth.
Jemi and Harman to the rescue
Rodrigues and captain Harmanpreet Kaur, however, brought India back into the contest with an epic third-wicket partnership worth 167 that got India past 200 with enough wickets and deliveries in hand. The two began on a cautious note but shifted gears soon enough, getting boundaries at regular intervals while also keeping the scoreboard ticking through ones and twos.
Harmanpreet fell for 89, with Gardner denying her yet another century in a World Cup semi-final against Australia with a superb catch at deep square leg.
Rodrigues, however, continued to fight on, forging valuable partnerships with Deepti Sharma (24) and Richa Ghosh (26) along the way that took India past the 300 mark. And she remained in the chase till the very end, stitching an unbroken 31-run stand for the sixth wicket with all-rounder Amanjot Kaur (15 not out off 8), masterminding one of the greatest chases in the history of the game as well as one of the greatest wins in Indian cricket history.
And while it was batters on both sides who ruled the roost in Thursday’s epic showdown, special credit must also be given to left-arm spinner Shree Charani – who was the standout performer with the ball with figures of 2/49 from 10 overs, finishing as the only bowler with an economy under five.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHere’s how former cricketers and other experts as well as Indian cricket fans reacted to the incredible result at Navi Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium: