Amanjot leaves her mark with fielding brilliance

Promoted ahead of Richa Ghosh at No.6, allrounder Amanjot Kaur had failed to capitalise on the platform set by the top order after she got out for 12 off 14 balls. Introduced as first change, she was also not able to build pressure with her medium-pace, going for 34 runs in four overs.

- Sanjjeev K Samyal

Just when it looked like Sunday's World Cup final against South Africa may not prove a personally successful outing for her, the 25-year-old from Chandigarh produced two valuable acts on the field to play a crucial role in the first World Cup win of the Indian women's team, by 52 runs.

Now on, whenever the 2025 ICC Women's World Cup final is discussed, Amanjot's run out of attacking opener Tazmin Brits with a direct hit from mid-off and her juggling catch to dismiss South Africa captain and batting mainstay Laura Wolvaardt on 101 will always be mentioned.

"I knew I did not have a good day with the ball, and in batting I was 10 runs short for the team. I had to cover that from somewhere, (so) if we add 10 runs from the field it will add to the total (298) and the target will get bigger. I was focussed on trying to cover that up," Amanjot said after India's emotional victory at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.

During SA's chase, India had struggled to break the opening stand till the 10th over as Brits built a 51-run partnership with Wolvaardt. Brits, however, made the mistake of not running straight while taking on Amanjot, fielding at mid-off, while trying to steal a single.