Key events
34th over: South Africa 180-5 (Wolvaardt 83, Dercksen 22) Harmanpreet goes back to her seamers, bringing on Renuka Singh Thakur, whose over goes for five. India are still in charge, but it’s not in the bag yet.
33rd over: South Africa 175-5 (Wolvaardt 81, Dercksen 19) Shree Charani restores order, conceding only two singles in this over. But Annerie Dercksen has given the South Africans hope. One of those sixes – don’t ask me which – was measured at 84 metres, making it the biggest hit of this World Cup. The previous record-holder was Richa Ghosh, who could only watch from behind the stumps as the ball sailed away into the night sky.
Only 17 off the over!
32nd over: South Africa 173-5 (Wolvaardt 80, Dercksen 18) So they needed nine off this over … and they’ve got 17! Dercksen goes berserk, slugging a high full toss from Yadav for six, then lofting the resulting free hit for six more. Yadav has 5-0-45-0 and the rate required tumbles to 7.0.
31st over: South Africa 156-5 (Wolvaardt 78, Dercksen 4) Annerie Dercksen shows some intent, guiding the ball round the corner and turning a one into a two with some dogged running. The run rate required is about 7.5, so although this over goes well for them, with six runs and no mishaps, they now need nine off the next one to make up for it. The cruelty of white-ball maths.
30th over: South Africa 150-5 (Wolvaardt 75, Dercksen 1) So South Africa are halfway there, but they’re livin’ on a prayer. Their only hope is for Wolvaardt to get another 169, and to do that she will need a second wind.
WICKET! Jafta c Yadav b Sharma 16 (SA 148-5)
Right on cue! Jafta drags a ball from outside off to midwicket, where Yadav makes no mistake.
29th over: South Africa 145-4 (Wolvaardt 73, Jafta 15) Hang on, Shafali’s back. The South Africans play her better, taking five runs without risk. The problem is not so much the required rate (7.29) as the wickets: they can’t afford to lose another one any time soon.
28th over: South Africa 141-4 (Wolvaardt 72, Jafta 11) A quiet over from Deepti Sharma. Shafali Verma is having a rest now, perhaps because she’s unused to bowling as many as three overs in a day. In 30 ODIs, she had bowled only 14 overs before today and taken just one wicket (for 76). So it was a masterstroke by Harmanpreet to bring her on.
27th over: South Africa 138-4 (Wolvaardt 70, Jafta 10) Even Wolvaardt is beginning to wobble. Facing Shree, she connects with thin air outside off, then mistimes a cut and is lucky to see it pop into the gap to the right of backward point. Four singles off the over, but SA are clinging on by their fingernails.
26th over: South Africa 134-4 (Wolvaardt 68, Jafta 8) A glimmer of hope for South Africa. Sinalo Jafta had been dominating the strike and doing very little with it (four off 17 balls), but now she plays a gorgeous shot – a cover drive off Yadav, threaded through a small gap, so she has eight off 18 balls.
25th over: South Africa 127-4 (Wolvaardt 66, Jafta 3) Another good over from Shafali, conceding only two singles and somehow dissuading the umpire from calling a clear wide. SA are treading water now and at the halfway stage they need another 172. “The worm,” says one of the commentators, “is losing its way.”
24th over: South Africa 125-4 (Wolvaardt 65, Jafta 2) These wickets from Shafali have dried up the runs too. This over goes for just a single, to make 16-2 off the last five overs. SA have been far better at hitting boundaries than twos.
23rd over: South Africa 124-4 (Wolvaardt 65, Jafta 1) This wicket is the one they thought they had a minute ago – a strangle down the leg side. It means Shafali Verma had 2-6 from two overs to go with her top score in the match so far. And it caps a tough day for the usually excellent Marizanne Kapp, who has followed ten fruitless overs with a single-figure score.
WICKET! Kapp c Ghosh b Shafali 4 (SA 123-4)
Another one! And now India are right on top.
22nd over: South Africa 123-3 (Wolvaardt 65, Kapp 4) For a moment India reckon they’ve got another one as their keeper, Ghosh, thinks she’s got Wolvaardt caught behind. The ump doesn’t agree and Ultra Edge doesn’t either, so India lose another review (and the ball goes down as a wide). Reviewing does seem to be the weakest part of their game.
“Good afternoon from a drizzly Portugal Tim,” says Geoff Wignall. “I was wondering why no scoreboard for the OBO. Do you know?” I’m afraid I don’t. “I hope it isn’t because it’s ‘just’ women’s cricket.” I second that emotion.
21st over: South Africa 118-3 (Wolvaardt 63, Kapp 2) The South Africans have been trying to get out caught-and-bowled and now one of them has succeeded. It starts with Harmanprett throwing the ball to Shafali, who batted so well earlier. And then Sune Luus, whose shot selection had been so shrewd, tries to whip a straight ball to leg. It stops on her and pops back to the bowler, who takes a crisp low catch. Advantage India!
WICKET! Luus c&b Shafali 25 (SA 114-3)
The breakthrough! Caught Shafali, bowled Shafali, but scripted by Harmanpreet.
20th over: South Africa 113-2 (Wolvaardt 60, Luus 25) Another sweep from Luus, another boundary. That’s a fine fifty partnership from her and Wolvaardt. And we’ve reached the 20-over mark, so this game will have a winner!
19th over: South Africa 109-2 (Wolvaardt 60, Luus 21) It’s Groundhog Over at the other end too. Yadav again goes for back-to-back boundaries, but there’s no luck involved this time – just skill from Luus, who plays a hard sweep followed by a gentle lap.
18th over: South Africa 100-2 (Wolvaardt 60, Luus 12) This over from Shree Charani is a photocopy of her previous one. First five balls: four dots, one run from Luus. Last ball: four to Wolvaardt, who whips a straight ball into the gap behind deep square. That’s supposed to be her weakness!
Another fifty to Wolvaardt!
17th over: South Africa 95-2 (Wolvaardt 56, Luus 11) After seeing one left-arm spinner do well (batr that last ball), Harmanpreet summons another – Radha Yadav. She bowls a full toss, which Wolvaardt thumps to long-on. Some poor fielding lets it through for four and that’s fifty to Wolvaardt. Next ball, Wolvaardt gets some more luck as she edges for four. You don’t make your own luck, but she has had a magnificent World Cup.
16th over: South Africa 84-2 (Wolvaardt 47, Luus 9) Shree bowls five good balls and then one bad one that dribbles down the leg side. Wolvaardt helps herself from the buffet with a comfy sweep. A caption says that India were 92-0 at this stage
Drinks: India on top
15th over: South Africa 78-2 (Wolvaardt 43, Luus 8) Sune Luus brings vast experience and shows it with a cool, calm cut for four off Amanjot, whose three overs have cost 25.
And that’s drinks with India on top for now and fielding very well, a sure sign of a thriving team. But Wolvaardt is still there and going well enough to haunt their dreams.
14th over: South Africa 71-2 (Wolvaardt 42, Luus 2) A good tight over from Shree Charani, who now has 1-5 from two overs. But there’s been another landmark for Wolvaardt: she has grabbed the record for most runs in a women’s World Cup from Alyssa Healy (509).
13th over: South Africa 69-2 (Wolvaardt 41, Luus 1) Wolvaardt takes a leaf out of Brits’ book with a uppish straight drive off Amanjot, but she hits it so hard that it’s always going for four. These wickets clearly haven’t sent her into her shell, but she can’t get 300 on her own. Three other batters are going to have to get 40, and two of the candidates have already gone.
12th over: South Africa 62-2 (Wolvaardt 35, Luus 0) So the ebb and flow continue. South Africa, who started tentatively, then blossomed, have now lost two wickets in three overs. But Wolvaardt is still there and Kapp is still to come.
WICKET! Bosch LBW b Shree Charani 0 (SA 62-2)
Alas, poor Anneke. She gets a ball that turns from the slow left-armer Shree Charani, misses it and is given LBW. She doesn’t review when it might have saved her as there seemed to be a chance that the ball had pitched outside leg. But off Bosch goes, for her third duck in this World Cup, and her miserable day is complete.
Wolvaardt reaches 500!
11th over: South Africa 59-1 (Wolvaardt 32, Bosch 0) Wolvaardt, unruffled by the loss of her partner, lifts Sharma for six over long-on and sails past 500 runs in this World Cup, a fabulous achievement. At the other end is Anneke Bosch, who has a fraction of that – 35, I think. And she’s already dropped two catches today. This might be a good time to find some form.
10th over: South Africa 52-1 (Wolvaardt 25, Bosch 0) Amanjot Kaur could have been sulking because she’d just been taken off after one expensive over. Instead she was alert at mid-on, swooping and hitting a stump-and-a-half as Brits set off a touch late because she’d been on the back foot. Nasser Hussain spots that his favourite plaer, Jemimah Rodrigues, played her part too, with a fine diving stop a couple of balls earlier which kept Brits tied down.
WICKET! Brits run out 23 (SA 51-1)
A direct hit by Amanjot … and India have the breakthrough!
9th over: South Africa 51-0 (Wolvaardt 24, Brits 23) Another bowling change as India turn to spin in the form of Deepti Sharma’s off-breaks. Brits again comes close to being caught-and-bowled, but then she belts another of those fours back past the bowler. South AFrica’s fifty comes up, no trouble.
8th over: South Africa 44-0 (Wolvaardt 23, Brits 17) Harmanpreet makes her first bowling change, replacing Kranti with Amanjot. It almost works as Brits again flirts with offering a caught-and-bowled, but then it goes wrong. Amanjot bowls a ball that could be a wide down the leg side, only to see it whipped for four by Laura Wolvaardt, who then carts her over midwicket for four more, with a hint of contempt. That’s 11 off the over and 32 off the last four.
7th over: South Africa 33-0 (Wolvaardt 15, Brits 14) Cheered by the sight of Wolvaardt getting into the groove, Brits starts her blitz. She lofts Renuka back over her shoulder and all the way for six. India won the first four overs, albeit with little to show for it (12-0); SA have won the last three (21-0).
6th over: South Africa 26-0 (Wolvaardt 15, Brits 7) Wolvaardt, facing Kranti, plays a better shot, a pull for four off the front foot, in fact after a dance down the track. She follows that with a clip for two off the stumps, which, we’ve just learned from a caption, is her Achilles heel.
