Indian bowlers' tremendous bowling performance followed by Gongadi Trisha and Soumya Tiwari's knocks helped India lift the inaugural U19 Women's T20 World Cup title after defeating England by seven wickets in the summit clash at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom, South Africa on Sunday. Legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar admitted that women's cricket in the country was on the up and the win will inspire a whole generation to take up sports.
"Indian women's cricket is on the up! First the announcement of the #WPL & now the #U19T20WorldCup win. Congratulations to the entire women's team on winning the inaugural U19 World Cup. This win will inspire a whole generation to take up sports," tweeted Tendulkar.
Star India batter Virat Kohli also expressed his happiness at Team India's U19 title win.
"U-19 World Cup Champions! What a special moment! Congratulations girls on your triumph," tweeted Virat.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma also tweeted, "Big congratulations to the U-19 girls' cricket team for winning the World Cup. Well done on making the nation proud #JaiHind @bcciwomen @bcci."
Legendary batter and former BCCI president Sourav Ganguly said that the win is a "great stepping stone for the girls".
"Congratulations to the Women's under 19 team for winning the World Cup ... it's a great stepping stone for the girls to take their game to the higher level .@BCCIWomen," tweeted Ganguly.
Former Indian all-rounder and World Cup 2011 winner Yuvraj Singh also tweeted, "Congratulations to our Indian Women's team on winning the U-19 World Cup! Well played champions @BCCIWomen @BCCI."
Legendary India batter and former skipper Mithali Raj also congratulated the women's team on their monumental win.
"CHAMPIONS! Congratulations #TeamIndia, this is a monumental achievement! This fantastic victory shows how dominating you have been throughout the tournament. The triumph is even more special considering this is the first-ever Women's #U19T20WorldCup. Cherish every moment!," tweeted Mithali.
Indian opener Smriti Mandhana also expressed her pride for "the bunch".
"Champions of the world. Proud. Absolutely proud of the bunch. Champions in the inaugural edition makes it even more special. This is just the beginning. Go team #U19T20WorldCup #TeamIndia," tweeted Mandhana.
Former Indian pace legend Jhulan Goswami also tweeted, "Historic win Proud of our U19 team A great performance by Titas Congratulations to all the players. This victory will inspire millions #U19T20WorldCup #Champions #WomensCricket #TeamIndia."
Chasing a target of 69, India captain Shafali Verma started their world cup winning chase by smashing a beautiful four on Hannah Baker's delivery. Baker then gave her team a big breakthrough as she dismissed Shafali for 15 off 11. England bowlers tried to turn the game back in their hands as captain Grace Scrivens removed dangerous batter Shweta Sehrawat for 5 runs of 6 balls.
The right-handed batter Gongadi Trisha then came out to bat. Soumya Tiwari played some aggressive boundaries while Trisha played the anchor role. After 10 overs India needed 21 runs in 60 balls to win. Gongadi Trisha then opened her hands to hammer Ellie Anderson for back-to-back two fours.
In the 13th over of the innings, Alexa Stonehouse dismissed batter Gongadi Trisha for 24 off 29 deliveries. Soumya Tiwari then led Team India to clinch the inaugural U19 Women's T20 World Cup title beating England by seven wickets.
Earlier, opted to field first, Indian bowlers completely dominated the game from the beginning against England in the summit clash. Titas Sadhu provided India with their first wicket of the innings, dismissing England opener Liberty Heap on a two-ball duck.
The duo of Grace Scrivens and Niamh Fiona Holland tried to handle the pressure as they played some boundary shots. However, Holland could not stand long on the crease as she was sent back to the pavilion.
After Holland's wicket, England's batters could not hold long and lost their wicket at regular intervals in front of Indian bowlers' tremendous bowling performance. India set the tone early with the new ball and gave blows to the England Women Under-19 at regular intervals to bundle them for 68.
Titas Sadhu, Archana Devi and Parshavi Chopra bagged two wickets respectively. Ryana Macdonald Gay scored the highest for England with 19 runs off 24 balls.
Brief score: England 68 in 17.1 overs (Ryana Macdonald Gay 19, Alexa Stonehouse 11; Titas Sadhu 2-6) vs India 69-3 in 14 overs (Soumya Tiwari 24*, Gongadi Trisha 24; Hannah Baker 1-13).
(ANI)
