From Lord's collapse to no-ball at Christchurch to World Cup glory: 'Player of the Tournament Deepti Sharma lives a hard-earned redemption

Navi Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], November 3 (ANI): Following her team's monumental ICC Women's World Cup win, Indian all-rounder completed a redemption story for the ages. From being caught in a shocker of a batting collapse during the 2017 World Cup final against England, she has come a long way to not only achieving the World Cup trophy, but also becoming the first player ever to hit a double of 200 runs and 20 wickets in a 50-over World Cup, be it men's or women's event.

Deepti delivered one of the all-time great World Cup campaigns, scoring 215 runs in seven innings at an average of 30.71 and a strike rate of 90.33, with three fifties and a best score of 58 and topping the wicket-taking charts with 22 scalps in nine innings at an average of over 20, with a match-winning fifty and five-wicket haul coming in the final, truly saving her best for the last.

During the 2017 WC final vs England, she was helping India chase 229 runs, but she was the last recognised batter dismissed when India needed 11 in 12 balls, the ninth wicket to fall as a part of a collapse from 191/3 to 219 all out, resulting in a heart-aching nine-run loss.

In the 2022 edition, she did not even get a chance to take her team to the semifinals. In a must-win game against South Africa, she did have Mignon du Preez caught and bowled when the Proteas needed three runs in two balls. But she had delivered a no-ball. Team India lost the must-win match by three wickets and India missed the spot to the semifinals by a whisker, falling just a win short of entering the top four and finishing fifth.

However, in the 2025 final, she had a massive role to play, scoring a run-a-ball 58 and having important partnerships with skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh. She also unleashed a game-changing spell just when a 61-run stand between skipper Laura Wolvaardt and Annerie Dercksen threatened to put India's dream in danger, removing both set batters and getting a five-wicket haul, including the match-winning wicket of Nadine de Klerk.

Speaking during the post-match presentation, Deepti said that the tournament win "feels like a dream" because the team had not come out of their past emotions.

"Feeling really nice, I could contribute this way in a World Cup final. We have always thought about how we can use the takeaways from every match. Thanks to them (the people), this would not have been possible. As a team, we are feeling very happy," she said with joy.

The all-rounder also said that she enjoys performing no matter what role she is given, and being able to perform well as an all-rounder at such a stage is an amazing feeling.

"Laura played a very good innings. However, we were always calm and cheered each other up. As a bowling unit, we were talking about going to the last ball and to focus on our best ball, and that is what we did. (On what she wants to see changing) There has been a lot of change since 2017. I hope there are even more matches now for us. I just wanted to dedicate this player of the tournament trophy to my mom and dad," she added.

South Africa won the toss and elected to bowl first. A century partnership started off things for India, with openers Smriti Mandhana (45 in 58 balls, with eight fours) and Shafali Verma approaching things with positive intent. It was followed by another 62-run stand between Shafali (87 in 78 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) and Jemimah Rodrigues (24 in 37 balls, with a four), helping India settle at 166/2.

A 52-run stand between skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (20 in 29 balls, with two fours) and Deepti Sharma took India breach the 200-run mark. Great finishing by Deepti (58 in 58 balls, with three fours and a six) and Richa Ghosh (34 in 24 balls, with three fours and two sixes) helped India reach 298/7 in their 50 overs.

Ayabonga Khaka (3/58) ended up as the pick of the bowlers for leading wicket-taker for SA.

During the run-chase, a fifty-run stand started things for SA, with Tazmin Brits (23 in 35 balls, with two fours and a six) being the first victim. Eventually, despite skipper Laura Wolvaardt's dominance, the golden arms of Shafali Verma (2/36) and Shree Charani reduced SA to 148/5.

However, a partnership of 61 runs for the sixth wicket with Annerie Dercksen (37 in 35 balls, with a four and two sixes) helped Laura slowly build pressure on India as she followed up her semifinal century with a title clash ton, scoring 101 in 98 balls, with 11 fours and a six. However, a game-changing spell from Deepti removed both set batters and had Proteas struggling at 221/8. She became the first Indian woman with a WC final four-fer. Deepti (5/39) eventually managed to convert it into a fiver, as India made history to win their maiden WC title by bundling out SA for 246 runs. (ANI)

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