India continued their dominant run in the Women’s U19 T20 World Cup, booking their place in the final with a nine-wicket win over England at Kuala Lumpur. India are the defending champion, having won the inaugural edition held in South Africa in 2021.
India will face South Africa, the only other unbeaten team in the tournament, in the final on February 2 at the same venue.
India have been ruthless throughout the tournament and this semi-final was no different. After restricting England to 113/8, they comfortably chased it down with nine wickets and five overs to spare.
Former Team India men’s great, VVS Laxman, was present at the venue, making the victory ‘Very Very Special’. Parunika Sisodia was named Player of the Match for returning figures of three for 21 from four overs.
The scorecard might suggest that England batted poorly to post a low total. But the reality was different. After winning the toss, England captain Abi Norgrove chose to bat, and their openers, Davina Perrin and Jemima Spence, provided a flying start. In just four overs, they put on 37 runs before Spence fell on the first ball bowled by Parunika, the left-arm spinner.
Perrin looked in sublime touch, punishing anything in the slot or full outside off stump. The Indian bowlers initially struggled to maintain a tight line, allowing her to find boundaries freely. However, Parunika quickly adjusted, bowling a wicket-to-wicket line, and dismissing two batters in the same over.
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Despite England reaching a strong position at 73/2 after 10 overs, India’s spin trio of Aayushi Shukla, Vaishnavi Sharma and Parunika turned the game around. They stuck to a disciplined line and length, choking the runs and triggering a collapse. In the final 10 overs, England lost six wickets for just 40 runs. Only Perrin (45 off 40), Norgrove (30 off 25) and Amu Surenkumar (14* off 13) managed to score in double digits.
Parunika and Vaishnavi both finished with three wickets, while Aayushi picked up two. Six of the English batters dismissed were bowled, a testament to the accuracy of the bowlers. The batters frequently attempted conventional and slog sweeps but missed, leading to a ‘you miss, I hit’ scenario.
Reflecting on her bowling strategy, Parunika said in the post-match presentation: “My plan was clear. I would bowl at the stumps and let the ball do the work. The pitch suited me as a bowler, and I focused on consistency rather than turn. We did not feel too much pressure even when England started fast. We were confident we could chase this.”
Chasing 114, India’s in-form openers, Gongadi Trisha and G Kamalini, provided a steady start. They put on 60 for the first wicket in nine overs before Trisha fell for 35 off 29 balls to Phoebe Brett.
In the next over, Surenkumar thought she had dismissed Kamalini, but the TV umpires overturned the verdict for a catch, ruling that the ball had touched the ground. Kamalini took full advantage of the reprieve, staying unbeaten on 56 off 50 balls. Sanika Chalke (11 off 12) kept her company.
Brief score: England-W 113/8 in 20 overs (Davina Perrin 45 off 40, Parunika Sisodia 3/21 in four overs) lost to India-W 117/1 in 15 overs (G Kamalini 56* off 50 balls, Phoebe Brett 1/30 in four overs) by nine wickets.
Also Read: Trisha and Vaishnavi help India U19 start Super Six stage with emphatic win