Half-centuries from Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma  have led India  to the second highest total in a Women’s World Cup  final. They finished two runs short of 300, however, at a ground where dew has helped chasing teams significantly, and against a South Africa line-up that bats all the way down to No. 9.

The contest was tantalisingly placed at the halfway stage. India would definitely have wanted more, having been 200 for 3 at the 35-over mark, but for all that, 299 will make for a stiff chase anywhere, never mind in a World Cup final against the hosts in a stadium jam-packed with home support.

And this pitch at the DY Patil Stadium hasn’t looked quite as flat as the one that hosted the India-Australia semi-final did; the ball gripped and stopped for both South Africa’s spinners and their seamers when they bowled cutters, and India will have made note of this.

Brief scores:

India Women  298 for 6  in 50 overs (Smriti Mandhana 45, Shafali Verma 87, Deepti Sharma 58, Richa Ghosh 34; Ayabonga Khaka 3-58) vs South Africa Women 

(Cricinfo)