Women’s World Cup: Deepti Sharma Achieves Rare Feat for Second Time in ODI Cricket

Guwahati (The Uttam Hindu): India defeated Sri Lanka by 59 runs via the Duckworth-Lewis method in the opening match of the Women’s World Cup 2025 held on Tuesday in Guwahati. Deepti Sharma was named Player of the Match, showcasing her brilliance with both bat and ball to achieve a rare feat.

Deepti Sharma became only the third Indian woman to score 50+ runs and take 3 wickets in the same ODI, achieving this milestone for the second time in her career.

Coming in at number six, Deepti Sharma scored 53 runs off 53 balls with three fours. She then bowled 10 overs, conceding 54 runs while taking 3 wickets, playing a pivotal role in India’s victory.

Previously, in 2017 against Ireland, Deepti had scored an unbeaten 51 runs and took 3 wickets for 20 runs. Besides Deepti, Jemimah Rodrigues and Shikha Pandey are the only other Indian women to achieve this. Jemimah accomplished it in 2023 against Bangladesh, scoring 86 runs and taking 4 wickets for just 3 runs. Shikha Pandey did it in 2014 against South Africa, scoring 59 runs and taking 3 wickets for 19 runs.

Batting first after losing the toss at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, India scored 269 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in a rain-affected 47-over match. Amanjot Kaur top-scored with 57 runs, while Deepti Sharma contributed 53 runs and Harleen Deol added 48. Inoka Ranwira picked up 4 wickets for Sri Lanka.

Under the Duckworth-Lewis method, Sri Lanka was set a revised target of 271 runs but managed only 211 in 45.4 overs. Captain Chamari Athapaththu scored 43 runs, but it wasn’t enough to win. Deepti Sharma led the Indian bowling attack with 3 wickets, while Sneh Rana and Shreya Chahar took 2 wickets each.