India shrivelled in obvious panic when Mithali Raj walked back. Then there was a little gasp of horror when Punam Raut was trapped lbw for 86. Harmanpreet Kaur rushed through the gears and drew India near a win, but she perished with the trophy not far from sight. It was India’s game, and all this while Mithali had not taken off her gear.
Mithali had perhaps envisaged running towards her victorious teammates with her pads on. Maybe she had an iota of hope, despite the quick fall of wickets, that India would paint a delirious scene at the backdrop of the historic Lord’s. There still was Deepti Sharma standing between the ebb and flow. However, Mithali took off one of her pads the moment Deepti became the ninth wicket to fall, with 11 runs still to attain.
Three balls later Anya Shrubsole put the final nail in the coffin and took England to their fourth World Cup win, leaving India with a 9-run defeat in the final of Women’s World Cup 2017.
***
Shikha Pandey, with her inherent ability to swing the ball in, had tried to dismember Tammy Beaumont and Lauren Winfield’s defence, but the swirling back lift of theirs manoeuvred the ball on the leg. When pitched outside off, they magically found gaps through the off-side and did so with abundance.
Jhulan Goswami, the highest wicket-taker in ODI history, bent her back to extract that extra inch of bounce, but she was bowling into the famous Lord’s slope. She, too, could not cast a spell on the Englishwomen.
Mithali resorted to her spin unit. She deployed Rajeshwari Gayakwad but only to concede 12 runs off it. Others would have hit the panic button, but Mithali triggered what is called a captain’s wicket. Persisting with Rajeshwari, she asked the left-armer to come round the wicket and allure the batter into playing it past short fine-leg. The first ball was a wide, but the second one ripped past Winfield’s bat and knocked her over round her legs.
England lost two crucial wickets — Beaumont and captain Heather Knight — in the next 5 overs. The scorecard read 63 for 3 in 16.1 overs, with momentum favouring India.
They managed to keep a lid on the boundaries, but Sarah Taylor and Natalie Sciver repelled them. That, for a while, gave a scare to India, as the duo added 83 runs.
Mithali, however, was hell-bent on taking wickets than strangle the runs. She tasked the experienced Jhulan for that.
Jhulan responded her captain well, getting rid of Sarah, Sciver, and Fran Wilson in her last spell. She ended with figures of 10-3-23-3.
England batters never rose above India after that, scoring 228 for 7.
***
India were well on course at 138 for 2, needing another 89 from 106. At the crease were Punam and Harmanpreet, already having added 95. India were strolling towards the title when Harmanpreet decided to slog-sweep Alex Harley. Before that she had collected 2 sixes. The timing was never the issue, and the track had only gotten better for batting. All the same, Harmanpreet found Tammy in the deep.
In came Veda Krishnamurthy to join Punam in India’s quest of maiden title. They added 53 runs together, and thud…
Climax fell upon Lord’s like an asteroid.
Anya caught Punam in the crease for 86. In the next over Alex cleaned up Sushma Verma for 0. In the next over Anya had Veda caught at mid-wicket for 35. In the same over, off the last ball, Anya knocked over Jhulan Goswami for 0. From 191 for 3 India Women collapsed to 201 for 7.
If the claps echoed, you knew England were in command. If they screamed and yelled and danced, you knew India were ahead in the race.
Now there was none of it. Every one of them fidgeted, bit their nails, joined their hands to pray, and whatnot.
India needed 28 off 30. Deepti and Shikha smartly rotated the strike, inching closer to the target.
When the winsome Sarah could not wear a smile anymore and the calm Mithali could not maintain composure, Deepti, all of 19, showed no signs of nerves. She wore confidence like a badge of honour and took control of the game.
It was Deepti against England. It was Deepti against the odds. It was Deepti against time. Will she? Can she? What if she does? Come on, she is only 19. Does she not have any emotions at all? Oh, her 188 is the highest score for India. But this is different. This is a World Cup final.
Deepti flicked, scythed, and played late. She did everything to keep India alive, but Shikha squandered untimely and ran herself out in a bid to giving strike to Deepti.
India were 8 down with 11 needed off 15. Poonam Yadav played out the 3 remaining balls to ensure Deepti got the strike. India had everything planned, and Deepti still looked calm.
She was now against the warhorse Anya. Surviving would not do. Deepti had to start with the finishing blows, and there fell the axe. Anya’s slow delivery had her caught at short mid-wicket.
Three deliveries later, England squashed India’s dream of maiden title.
Brief scores
England 228 for 7 in 50 overs (Natalie Sciver 51, Sarah Taylor 45; Jhulan Goswami 3 for 23) vs India 219 all-out 48.4 overs (Punam Raut 86, Harmanpreet Kaur 51; Anya Shrubsole 6 for 46) by 9 runs.
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