Alright then, Indian captain Mithali Raj has called it right at the toss and India will be bowling first. Preview: After a four-match unbeaten run, India will look to securing a semi-finals berth at the ICC Women’s World Cup when they meet South Africa at the Grace Road ground on Saturday. India will look to maintaining their winning streak after having defeated England, the West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in their previous outings. On the other hand, South Africa have been a bit inconsistent, winning two of their four matches. They lost to England while their match against New Zealand was abandoned due to rain. India are at the second spot on the points table with eight points, the same as defending champions Australia who are at the top position due to a superior run rate. [caption id=“attachment_3789945” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]
India Captain Mithali Raj and South Africa captain Dane van Niekerk. Agencies[/caption] For South Africa, a win against India will help them enter the top four and get into contention for a semi-finals spot. The Proteas are presently at the fifth spot with five points. India will heavily depend upon their in-form batter Smriti Mandhana and skipper Mithali Raj who have been in good nick throughout the tournament. Mandhana and Raj have figured in all the four matches played by India so far. Mandhana has scored 206 runs with an average of 51.50 while Raj has scored 178 runs with an average of 44.50. In the bowling department, the Indian spinners have wreaked the most damage on the opposition and may prove to be the key against South Africa as well. Indian spinners Ekta Bisht and Deepti Sharma have picked up seven wickets each while Poonam Yadav has taken five wickets in the four matches that India have played so far. Talented Indian batter Veda Krishnamurthy believes that her side holds the upper hand against South Africa and knows their strengths and weaknesses with the white ball. “We’re quite confident for the game against South Africa because in the last four or five games we have played against them we have done well. We are aware of their team, we know what combinations and players are there, so we can play according to our strengths,” she said. “We played them a couple of months back so we know their strengths and weaknesses, so we will be working towards them. We are more compact than them, because individually, South Africa are very good, but when it comes to collective performance, they really depend on their main players to do well.” On the other hand, South Africa will depend on their openers Lizelee Lee and Laura Wolvaardt to start well against India. Lee with 161 runs and Wolvaardt with 138 runs have been the leading scorers for South Africa in the three matches they have played so far. In the bowling department, pacer Marizanhe Kapp will be the key for the Proteas. Kapp is the leading wicket taker in the tournament with eight scalps in three matches. Leg-spinner Dane van Niekerk, who has picked up five wickets in three matches, will be another important player in the Proteas bowling department. Squads India: Mithali Raj (captain), Ekta Bisht, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Jhulan Goswami, Mansi Joshi, Harmanpreet Kaur, Veda Krishnamurthy, Smriti Mandhana, Mona Meshram, Nuzhat Parween, Shikha Pandey, Poonam Raut, Deepti Sharma, Sushma Verma (wicketkeeper), Poonam Yadav. South Africa: Dane van Niekerk (captain), Trisha Chetty (wicketkeeper), Moseline Daniels, Nadine de Klerk, Mignon du Preez, Shabnim Ismail, Marizanne Kapp, Ayabonga Khaka, Masabata Klaas, Lizelle Lee, Sune Luus, Raisibe Ntozakhe, Andrie Steyn, Chloe Tryon and Laura Wolvaardt. With inputs from IANS
ICC Women's World Cup 2017, highlights India vs South Africa, cricket result: Mithali Raj and Co undergo thorough hammering
Catch the live scores and updates of ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 match between India and South Africa to be played in Leicester.
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Largest defeats for India in Women’s World Cup: (By runs)
153 v Australia at Auckland in 1982
138 v Sri Lanka at Mumbai in 2013
115 v South Africa at Leicester in 2017
After 44 overs, India 155/9 (J Goswami 41, Poonam Yadav 0)
Wicket maiden for Luus.
OUT! Luus gets her first wicket in Bisht, as Bisht tries to clear the in field on the leg side, but ends up giving simplest of catches to Van Niekerk at square leg.
Poonam Yadav is the last woman to the crease.
After 44 overs, India 155/8 (J Goswami 40, Ekta Bisht 13)
Goswami is batting with a lot of freedom, she begins the over with back fooot punch through covers. High quality shot and then drives it through point, the ball swiftly passes from the right of point and in to the boundary. 10 runs off Kapp’s over.
After 43 overs, India 145/8 (J Goswami 32, Ekta Bisht 12)
Luus’ over yields 5 runs. Goswmai and Bisht rotate the strike and pick and chose their gaps for ones. India inch closer to 150
After 42 overs, India 140/8 (J Goswami 29, Ekta Bisht 9)
Important Goswami gets some runs under her belt especially with the games coming up against Australia and New Zealand, India will need all their players to contribute. Bisht gets one away as she runs it fine to third man boundary.
After 41 overs, India 134/8 ( J Goswami 28, Ekta Bisht 4)
Luss drops one short and Goswami goes over the covers and clears the infield by just, but the ball wins the race against the fielders chasing it. 6 more runs to the total.
Captains with a fifty and 4-for in a Women’s World Cup match:
Charlotte Edwards v New Zealand, Sydney, 2009
Dane van Niekerk v India, Leicester, 2017*
After 40 overs, India 128/8 ( J Goswami 24, Ekta Bisht 3)
Khaka to bowl the 40th, last over of batting powerplay. Goswmai’s edge runs down through vacant slip area to give India another boundary, if India lose they must keep the margin under 100 in order to not dent their run rate too much. 7 runs come of the over.
After 39 overs, India 121/8 ( J Goswami 19, Ekta Bisht 2)
Van Niekerk almost got her 5th wicket, but the first slip puts down Ekta Bisht, tough chance but should have held on to it. End of fablous spell, finishes with brilliant figures of 27/4.
OUT! Van Niekerk gets her 4th wicket and Deepti Sharma has to make the long walk back. She aimed to clear long on, doesn’t find the sweet spot, but has enough to carry it to long on. Van Niekerk has 5 balls for a 5-wicket haul.
Ekta Bisht comes out.
After 38 overs, India 118/7 (Deepti Sharma 60, J Goswami 18)
Sharma flicks through mid wicket for a single, Goswami returns the strike to fine leg. Ismail is keeping it tight and India are not in any hurry to chase down the total as they look to improve their net run rate. It is important to keeep the NRR in check as we build towards the business end of the tournament.
After 37 overs, India 115/7 (Deepti Sharma 58, J Goswami 17)
Van Niekerk’s 9th over costs just two singles, she has only 1 over left. Sharma keeps strike with a sweep to right of short fine leg.
After 36 overs, India 113/7 (Deepti Sharma 57, J Goswami 16)
Kapp keeps it back of a length. Goswmai tucks it deep square for a single and then Kapp misses her line as she adjusts to the left hander, wide down the leg. 2 runs off it.
After 35 overs, India 111/7 (Deepti Sharma 57, J Goswami 15)
Van Niekerk begins with 3 dots. Deepti picks it from her pads to deep backward square for a single. Goswami rocks back to play it through covers, but the ball was pushed through and it comes quickly to her, she hits to mid off. Last ball is on the legs, but Goswmai cannot put it away, they run for a leg bye.
After 34 overs, India 109/7 (Deepti Sharma 56, J Goswami 15)
Luss gets another go. She tosses up the first ball and it is juicy half volley that Goswami drives it through the covers for her first boundary after 37 balls. Goswmai gets another four off the 5th ball, this time the length was pulled back and she goes on her backfoot to punch it through extra covers.
After 33 overs, India 101/7 (Deepti Sharma 56, J Goswami 7)
After a couple of dots balls, Deepti and Goswami exchange singles and get India to hundred.
After 32 overs, India 99/7 (Deepti Sharma 55, J Goswami 6)
Ismail starts with low full toss on off and Sharma drills it to mid off. Ismail overstepps for the 3rd time and India hasn’t taken advatage of it. Ismail keeps it short of length outside off and Deepti looks to flat bat it straight down the ground, but only giving mid off some catching practice. They complete a single.
After 31 overs, India 95/7 (Deepti Sharma 53, J Goswami 5)
Deepti takes a single to mid wicket and Goswami’s sweep doesn’t come off well. van Niekerk tosses up nicley on the off side and Goswami looked to cut it a couple of times, but ended up finding the point fielder, missed out on the last ball that should have been put away.
After 30 overs, India 94/7 (Deepti Sharma 52, J Goswami 5)
Khaka into her 8th over.Sharma times a good looking straight drive to mid off and then drives it to cover, but keeps finding the fielder.She tucks it fine leg off her hips. Goswmai looked to drive it through covers, but the change of pace, gets inside of the bat back to the bowler.
Most 50-plus scores in a calendar year in ODIs:
9 – Ellyse Perry, 2016
8 – Debbie Hockley, 1997
8 – Mithali Raj, 2017
8 – Deepti Sharma, 2017
After 29 overs, India 92/7 (Deepti Sharma 51, J Goswami 4)
Kapp gives away 2 runs as she completes her 6th over. Deepti pushes a full ball to long on and Goswami takes a single off the last ball.
Most 50-plus scores before the age of 20 in a single edition of ICC Women’s World Cup:
3 – Charlotte Edwards, 1997
2 – Mithali Raj, 2000
2 – Smriti Mandhana, 2017
2 – Laura Wolvaardt, 2017
2 – Deepti Sharma, 2017
After 28 overs, India 90/7 (Deepti Sharma 50, J Goswami 3)
Digs out full ball outside off to third man and notches up her 7th fifty off 79 balls. It is alone fight from Deepti. 3 more runs added to India’s scorecard.
After 27 overs, India 87/7 (Deepti Sharma 47, J Goswami 3)
Sharma missed the opportunity to put it away on the 3rd ball. The ball was drifting on her pads and she couldn’t get her abt to intercept it and they pick up a leg-bye.
After 26 overs, India 86/7 (Deepti Sharma 47, J Goswami 3)
Sharma tucks it deep square for a couple and a nudge to deep mid wicket, makes it 3 off the over. Deepti slowly meanders towards her fifty.