India’s Shikha Pandey and Ekta Bisht took three wickets each to restrict South Africa to 186 runs, after which Pandey came back to score a match winning 59 to take India to an easy six-wicket win
The Report by Bishen Jeswant26-Nov-2014
ScorecardFile Photo: Shikha Pandey became the first Indian women to score a fifty and take three wickets in the same ODI•Getty Images
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186 South Africa Women’s total in the game, their highest against India in an ODI.
144 Chloe Tryon’s strike rate during her unbeaten 49 off 34 balls, the highest for a South African batsman during an innings of more than 30 balls.
1 Shikha Pandey is the first Indian player to score a fifty and take three or more wickets in the same game. She scored 59 and returned figures of 3 for 19.
60 Runs conceded by Shubhlakshmi Sharma off her 10 overs. She became the first Indian bowler to finish wicketless after her full quota of overs and concede six runs per over, or more.
89 The partnership between Harmanpreet Kaur and Pandey is India’s second-highest, fourth-wicket stand at home.
Led by a spirited all-round display from Shikha Pandey, India Women beat South Africa Women by six wickets in the second ODI in Bangalore, to draw level in the three-match series. This is also their first win in the ICC Women’s Championship.India won the toss for the second time this series, but chose to bowl this time around, despite there being no change in the venue or playing conditions. Mithali Raj explained the decision saying, “We lost the first game batting first, so we decided to bowl first and see how it goes”. The South African openers got the team off to a steady start, reaching 27 for no loss, but Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey struck in quick succession to have the visitors struggling at 63 for 4. However, captain Mignon du Preez, 36 off 71 balls, made sure that there was no collapse and posted a 54-run stand along with Dane van Niekerk, South Africa’s bowling hero from the first ODI.Pandey, who had only picked up one wicket in her previous two ODIs, kept things tight and returned career best figures of 3 for 19 from her ten overs. However, that was not enough to prevent South Africa from reaching 186, their highest score in an ODI against India. Chloe Tryon, South Africa’s matchwinner from the previous game, made a whirlwind 49 not out off 34 balls, and injected some life into South Africa’s otherwise sluggish innings. South Africa made 40 runs off the last five overs, with Tryon even hitting the first six of the series off the last ball of the innings.Possibly wary of a top-order collapse like the first ODI, the Indian openers started cautiously, posting 37 runs in 14.1 overs, before Smriti Mandhana was dismissed by van Niekerk, Sunette Loubser taking a sharp catch at short cover. Mithali Raj, who made her second single-digit score of the series, fell soon after but India’s chase always seemed to be on track. Pandey, 59 off 56 balls, and Harmanpreet Kaur, 42 not out off 61 balls, played some pleasing shots during their 89-run fourth-wicket stand. Pandey fell with 25 runs still needed, but the win was never in doubt. India did not lose another wicket, and went on to win by six wickets, with 32 balls to spare.The teams are scheduled to play the third and final ODI of the series on Friday, November 28.