South Africa’s women’s team secured an eight-wicket win over India in the second T20 International on Sunday, moving to a commanding 2-0 lead in the five-match series. India were dismissed for 147, and the hosts successfully chased the target with 17.1 overs to spare, finishing on 148 for two.
South Africa’s chase guided by Wolvaardt and Luus
Laura Wolvaardt set the tone with a composed 54, while Sune Luus struck a 57 to anchor the run chase. The platform was laid when the two batters stitched together a 106-run opening stand in only 12 overs, quickly putting South Africa in control of the contest.
- South Africa reached 148 for two in 17.1 overs to complete the chase
- Wolvaardt made 54 and Luus followed with 57
- The first-wicket partnership produced 106 runs in 12 overs
How the innings was built
Wolvaardt shaped her innings by finding gaps in the field and keeping the strike rotating regularly. She struck a six over covers off Sree Charani and reached her half-century in 30 deliveries, which was her 15th T20I fifty. At the other end, Luus kept the scoreboard ticking with an emphasis on singles and twos, adding a six off Shreyanka Patil as the chase gathered momentum.
Although Patil eventually removed both Wolvaardt and Luus, the damage had already been done—South Africa were too far ahead for India to recover.
India’s innings: Shafali’s 57 falls short
Earlier in the match, Shafali Verma provided the main impetus for India with a 57. However, the rest of the batting order failed to extend the start into a meaningful total, and India were ultimately bowled out for 147.
- India were all out for 147
- Shafali Verma top-scored with 57
Key partnerships and the turning point
Verma added 53 runs for the third wicket with debutant Anushka Sharma, who contributed 28. Even so, India had already suffered early setbacks, losing Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues in consecutive overs to Chloe Tryon (3/22).
After that partnership, South Africa’s bowlers tightened the contest further. Ayabonga Khaka, Tumi Sekhukhune (3/31), and Nadine de Klerk kept the pressure on by using slower deliveries and cutters to limit the flow of runs.
Shafali, who had attacked Sekhukhune earlier on, slowed down before reaching her fifty off 31 balls. She was then dismissed when she hit the ball in the air, with Noku Mlaba taking the catch. Anushka’s stay was also short-lived, as Tryon struck again to remove her as India slipped from 99 for two in 12 overs to 109 for four by the 14th over.
Late collapse: wickets keep falling
From that point, India’s innings unraveled further, with wickets arriving at regular intervals. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur, Richa Ghosh, and Deepti Sharma all fell while attempting to accelerate the scoring.
In the phase that followed, India lost eight wickets for 48 runs, which restricted their total and allowed South Africa to finish the chase comfortably.
