IND-W vs ZIM-WFollowing a clean sweep in the T20 series, the Indian women's cricket team comfortably defeated Zimbabwe in the first match of the ODI series. In the opening match held in Vadodara, the Indian side chased down a target of 198 runs in under 28 overs.
The stars of Team India's victory were spinner Sri Charani and opening batter Pratika Rawal. Charani delivered a career-best performance, taking 4 wickets, while Pratika scored a brilliant century, playing a pivotal role in securing a 9-wicket win for the team.
Zimbabwe Crumble Before Charani and Kranti
In the first match of the ODI series on Friday, October 23, Indian bowlers replicated the brilliance they had displayed during the T20 series. Once again, Indian spinners led by Shri Charani restricted Zimbabwe to a low total.
For Zimbabwe, Beloved Biza played a resilient innings, top-scoring with 62 runs. No other batter managed to reach the 30-run mark. In the final overs, Mitchell Mavunga scored a quick-fire 29, helping the team reach a total of 197 in 49.5 overs.
For India, Charani conceded only 23 runs in her 10 overs and claimed 4 wickets—the best performance of her ODI career. Alongside her, young fast bowler Kranti Gaud took 3 wickets, while Deepti Sharma claimed 2. Shafali Verma also picked up a wicket, and later went on to make a spectacular impact with the bat.
Pratika’s Century, Shafali’s Storm
For Team India, captain Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal provided a strong 93-run opening partnership, with the centurion-to-be dominating the proceedings. Although captain Mandhana was dismissed after scoring 32 runs, Zimbabwe failed to claim another wicket thereafter.
While Pratika continued her composed batting, Shafali upon arriving at the crease immediately began unleashing a barrage of fours and sixes. Shafali reached her half-century in just 29 balls. Meanwhile, with a boundary off the final delivery of the 27th over, Pratika completed her century in 96 balls.
This marks the third century of Pratika’s ODI career. Coincidentally, her previous century also came on October 23rd, when she played an innings of 122 runs against New Zealand during the 2025 World Cup.
On this occasion, Pratika scored 100 runs off 96 balls, an innings that included 15 boundaries. Shortly after, Shafali struck a four off the first ball of the 28th over to secure victory for the team. Shafali finished with 64 runs off just 33 balls, featuring 5 fours and 4 sixes.
