The Indian all-rounder contributed brilliantly throughout the tournament.
The Women in Blue have done it! India lifted their maiden World Cup title in Navi Mumbai after beating South Africa by 52 runs. It took them three World Cup Final appearances to put their hands on the trophy, and they will be proud of what they have achieved. However, Deepti Sharma was pretty much in the middle of all the action throughout the tournament, and was named the Player of the Tournament for her performances.
The Indian all-rounder became the first player to score a fifty and pick a five-wicket haul in the Final of a World Cup. Deepti Sharma came in to bat when the team lost Jemimah Rodrigues at 171/3. The openers had provided a good start, and the batters needed to ensure that they carry the momentum ahead. Deepti did just that, and scored a run-a-ball 58 to take the team to a competitive total.
Overall in the tournament, the 28-year-old was always present for the team in crucial moments, when the team needed her experience. 10 members from the squad were playing the world cup for the first time, which meant that the experienced players needed to step up. And that is exactly what Deepti Sharma did. She stepped up and how!
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The Indian all-rounder scored 215 runs in the tournament, and also ended up picking 22 wickets – a feat which is extremely rare for any player to achieve at such a big stage. The Women’s World Cup is exactly where India would have liked her best performance to come out and they would be pleased to see that Deepti’s experience shone through when it mattered the most.
In the final moments of the ultimate showdown, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur played a masterstroke by holding back a few overs of Deepti Sharma. Instead, she brought on Shafali Verma to bowl, and the right-handed opener struck gold for India. Shafali bagged two wickets for the team, and sent back two important players packing, one of which was Marizanne Kapp.
Having said that, what it did for India was that, it helped them preserve the overs of Deepti Sharma for a later stage and that is exactly when the off-spinner completed her five-wicket haul. Hence, it is no surprise to see Deepti Sharma amongst the runs and wickets in the tournament. It was a comprehensive victory over the side that had played extremely well throughout the tournament, to bounce back after a turbulent start to their campaign.
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