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Harmanpreet lifts the trophy at last. A shower of gold fireworks shoots into the sky. There’s gold tickertape too, and the voice of Freddie Mercury.
“We are the champions,” he sings. And then the worst line in any Queen song: “no time for losers”. The OBO will always have time for losers, or as we prefer to call them, runners-up.
Thanks for your company, correspondence and views on all sorts of things throughout this World Cup. It’s been a blast.
Harmanpreet Kaur of India celebrates with the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup trophy alongside team mates. Photograph: Pankaj Nangia/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 14.35 EST
When the first cricket World Cup was held, it was the women’s one in 1973. And India didn’t even enter. There were only six teams, and four nations – England, Australia, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, with two more teams (an International XI and Young England) making up the numbers. We’ve come a long way.
ShareThe Indians collect their medals
“And now it’s time to put a brand new name on the trophy,” says Mel Jones. The Indian players go up, one by one, to receive their winners’ medals. The crowd raise a few cheers, though most of them may well have headed home as it’s now 12.45am in Navi Mumbai. The popular vote looks like being won by Jemi Rodrigues – then by Shafali Verma, until she in turn is out-acclaimed by Harmanpreet Kaur. The people have spoken.
Updated at 14.22 EST
India played brilliant cricket, says Wolvaardt
“I couldn’t be prouder of this team,” says Wolvaardt, with a sad half-smile. “Unfortunately we were outplayed today – India played brilliant cricket… We were hoping for a little more swing early on, and we were in it for a lot of the chase, but just lost too many wickets… [In the field] I was checking that scoreboard and they [India] were tracking for a 350. Our back end was amazing.”
Spare a thought for the South Africans, who are now going up to collect their runners-up medals. They did eceptionally well to reach the final, giving England a battering, and they kept the final bubbling until the end. Their captain Laura Wolvaardt, at 26, is already a World Cup all-time great. A list of the top ten scorers in the women’s World Cup (over a career) shows that she is second, behind only Debbie Hockley and ahead of legends like Charlotte Edwards and Belinda Clark. Wolvaardt has played 24 World Cup matches, the fewest of any woman on that list.
Apparently there are men who play cricket, too. Here’s an update on two of them.
Deepti Sharma is not going home empty-handed. She will soon have a winner’s medal, and first she collects the trophy for the Player of the Tournament. She has taken 21 wickets with her off-breaks – more than anybody else – and seven of those came in the semi and the final, when push came to shove.
Shafali Verma is being interviewed, in Hindi (I presume). Which suggests that she is the Player of the Match. Fair enough – she set the tone with a fluent 87, then popped up with two wickets when she had only ever taken one before in ODIs. But India had more than one heroine. It could just as well have been Deepti Sharma for taking five wickets, or Harmanpreet Kaur for conducting the orchestra.
This result should make the world a slightly better place. It’s a world in which India looms large – the only real superpower in cricket (with apologies to Australia’s women, all-powerful until the other day). And it’s a world in which sportswomen in many countries still face all kinds of battles that don’t arise for their male counterparts.
Updated at 13.45 EST
It is, by the way, past midnight in Navi Mumbai. It’s been a long-day international. The start was delayed for two hours by rain, another element that could have played havoc with the players’ nerves. Further rain was forecast, but it had the good grace to keep away from the ground.
Updated at 13.48 EST
India lost as many of their group games as they won (three apiece). But they beat Australia in the semi-final, which was like climbing Everest before it became fashionable. And then, when they could have had an anti-climax, they held their nerve in the final, first making nearly 300, then clinging on to most of their catches, fielding sharply on the ground, and bowling well enough to win the match by 52 runs. They are worthy winners of the World Cup.
The screen is awash with tears. The London sky is ablaze with fireworks. They could be for Guy Fawkes but I like to think they’re for Harmanpreet Kaur and her merry women.
Sharede Klerk c Harmanpreet b Sharma 18 (SA 246 all out)
It was Harmanpreet, India’s captain, who ran back from cover to hold the catch. It was Deepti Sharma, the leading wicket-taker in the tournament, who took her fifth wicket of the day. And it is India who win their first women’s World Cup. South Africa were good, with an immense display from their captain Laura Wolvaardt, but not quite good enough. What a game!
Updated at 13.39 EST
INDIA WIN THE WORLD CUP!
And after all those drops, it’s a great catch!
Harmanpreet Kaur of India celebrates with team mates Arundhati Reddy (obscured) and Harleen Deol after taking the catch to dismiss Nadine De Klerk of South Africa and lead her team to victory. Photograph: Pankaj Nangia/Getty ImagesJemimah Rodrigues of India celebrates. Photograph: Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 14.19 EST
WICKET! Khaka run out 1 (SA 246-9)
45th over: South Africa 246-9 (de Klerk 18, Mlaba o) Charani continues … and de Klerk whacks her for four through midwicket. That wasn’t a bad ball but the next one is – loose, down the leg side, and it goes for five wides! Then there’s another wide, and another four! Stroked away by de Klerk, with so much composure it’s almost chilling. And then … Khaka is run out! Not by much, and she didn’t seem to see the danger as de Klerk, predictably, called her for a quick single off the last ball of the over. Oh dear.
44th over: South Africa 232-8 (de Klerk 10, Khaka 1) South Africa are leading the way today for dropped catches, winning 5-2. Or they were! India drop two in two balls. First Khaka gives a caught-and-bowled chance to Renuka, who psills it to her left. Then de Klerk swings for the fences, picks out Rodrigues and gets away with it as the ball pops out. I just don’t know what’s going off out there. SA need 67 off six overs.
“Great work,” says Glenn Walton. Thank you. “What a game! ODIs generate tension and anxiety for the armchair fan like no other format. Come on you Proteas!”
43rd over: South Africa 229-8 (de Klerk 8, Khaka 0) It’s not over, Nasser is saying, till Nadine de Klerk is out. Facing Charani, she rises to the occasion with two, four, one. The two was streaky, a miscue into the leg side, but the four was a fine sweep. Her partner, Ayabonga Khaka, is not so fluent, prodding at thin air as Charani keeps on finding some turn outside off.
SA need 70 off seven overs. If they had seven wickets left, you might back them.
42nd over: South Africa 221-8 (de Klerk 1, Khaka 0) Hats off to Deepti Sharma, who has two wickets in the over, four for 39 in the match and 21 wickets in the tournament – the most by anybody. SA need 78 off eight overs, so the rate has shot up to 9.75 and SA’s chances have dwindled to virtually nil.
ShareWICKET! Tryon LBW b Sharma 9 (SA 221-7)
And another! Tryon is rapped on the pad in line with leg stump. It’s given … and it’s umpire’s call! This over has surely won the match.
ShareWICKET!! Wolvaardt c Amanjot b Sharma 101 (SA 220-7)
At long last, Laura Wolvaardt is out. She gets under a big hit and Amanjot, running in from deep midwicket, has it … then she fumbles it, then she grabs it! You couldn’t make it up.
South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt looks dejected after her wicket is taken. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/ReutersShare
Updated at 13.46 EST
41st over: South Africa 220-6 (Wolvaardt 101, Tryon 9) Chloe Tryon has been in fluent form and she shows it with a well-timed force for four, followed by a two in the same direction. And another! SA need 79 from nine overs at a rate of 8.77.
40th over: South Africa 211-6 (Wolvaardt 100, Tryon 1) So, ten overs left. And SA need 88, so they’ve got to rattle along at nearly nine an over with only four wickets left – and Wolvaardt surely flagging a bit. What a fantastic feat it will be, if she can pull it off.
Updated at 13.06 EST
A hundred to Laura Wolvaardt!
A hundred in the semi, a hundred in the final! She pushes a single and barely celebrates at all. The girl stood on the burning deck.
ShareWICKET! Dercksen b Sharma 35 (SA 209-6)
Deepti makes the breakthrough! With a yorker, on off stump, which sneaks under Dercksen’s flashing blad. She was very good while she lasted.
39th over: South Africa 207-5 (Wolvaardt 98, Dercksen 34) Harmanpreet continues to show faith in Shafali, and this time it’s not repaid. As Shafali goes too short and then too full, Wolvaardt helps herself to a cut for four (helped by a misfield) and a drive for four more.
ShareFifty partnership!
38th over: South Africa 198-5 (Wolvaardt 90, Dercksen 33) Deepti Sharma comes back and goes for only four off the over, so the rate required is about 8.5. But these two bring up their fifty partnership, a hell of an achievement in the pressure of a World Cup final.
For some mysterious reason, Freed From Desire rings out over the PA.
Updated at 12.59 EST
37th over: South Africa 194-5 (Wolvaardt 88, Dercksen 31) Shafali returns and is belted for four, first ball, by the mighty Dercksen. The win predictor pops up, saying India have a 64pc chance of a win, SA 36. At the start of this innings it was 65-35, so Laura Wolvaardt has battled away for 37 overs to improve her side’s chances by one measly per cent.
36th over: South Africa 186-5 (Wolvaardt 86, Dercksen 25) Renuka continues … and has Dercksen dropped! By Deepti Sharma at midwicket. It was a loose swat of a shot and Deepti seemed to have it covered as she went low to her left. It’s still a good over for India, only three from it. SA need 113 off 14 overs, so the rate required creeps above 8 for the first time.
Updated at 12.51 EST
35th over: South Africa 183-5 (Wolvaardt 85, Dercksen 23) Good stuff again from Shree Charani, who now has 1-26 from seven overs. But Wolvaardt is still there, threatening to be the immovable object to India’s irresistible force. SA need 116 off the last 15 overs at 7.73 RPO.
34th over: South Africa 180-5 (Wolvaardt 83, Dercksen 22) Harmanpreet goes back to her seamers, bringing on Renuka Singh Thakur, whose over goes for five. India are still in charge, but it’s not in the bag yet.
33rd over: South Africa 175-5 (Wolvaardt 81, Dercksen 19) Shree Charani restores order, conceding only two singles in this over. But Annerie Dercksen has given the South Africans hope. One of those sixes – don’t ask me which – was measured at 84 metres, making it the biggest hit of this World Cup. The previous record-holder was Richa Ghosh, who could only watch from behind the stumps as the ball sailed away into the night sky.
ShareOnly 17 off the over!
32nd over: South Africa 173-5 (Wolvaardt 80, Dercksen 18) So they needed nine off this over … and they’ve got 17! Dercksen goes berserk, slugging a high full toss from Yadav for six, then lofting the resulting free hit for six more. Yadav has 5-0-45-0 and the rate required tumbles to 7.0.
31st over: South Africa 156-5 (Wolvaardt 78, Dercksen 4) Annerie Dercksen shows some intent, guiding the ball round the corner and turning a one into a two with some dogged running. The run rate required is about 7.5, so although this over goes well for them, with six runs and no mishaps, they now need nine off the next one to make up for it. The cruelty of white-ball maths.