NEW DELHI: Indian spinners Deepti Sharma she etched her name in the record books during India’s must-win Women’s World Cup T20 clash against Australia, becoming the highest wicket-taker in the history of women’s international cricket.Deepti achieved the milestone when she dismissed Australian opener Beth Mooney, who erred and was caught by Radha Yadav at long-on. The wicket took Deepta’s tally to 356 international wickets, moving her ahead of the former Indian pacer Jhulan Goswami (355) to the top of the all-time list. Australia’s Ellyse Perry (336), England’s Katherine Sciver-Brunt (335), Sophie Ecclestone (333) and South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail (323) complete the top six.
Most wickets in women’s international cricket
- 356 – Deepti Sharma (IND)
- 355 – Jhulan Goswami (IND)
- 336 – Ellyse Pelly (AUS)
- 335 – Katherine Sciver-Brunt (ENG)
- 333 – Sophie Ecclestone (ENG)
- 323 – Shabnim Ismail (SA)
Earlier, India posted 170/4 after the captaincy Harmanpreet Kaur he produced a brilliant unbeaten knock of 56 off just 27 balls. The changes came at a crucial time as India needed a win to keep their semi-final hopes alive after South Africa’s win over Bangladesh.India got off to a steady start with Smriti Mandhana (38) and Shafali Verma (34) adding 66 runs for the opening wicket. However, the strike rate remained moderate before Shafali was dismissed as he tried to accelerate. Soon after, Mandhana ran out after a mix-up with Jemimah Rodrigues, leaving India under pressure.Jemimah scored 34 off 28 balls but struggled to maintain the momentum and was eventually pulled before the final over to make way for big hitter Richa Ghosh.While India’s batting effort seemed a little below par for most of the innings, Harmanpreet changed the momentum of the game in spectacular fashion. The skipper smashed three consecutive sixes off Australian captain Sophie Molineux in the final over, helping India score 23 runs in the last six balls to finish with a competitive total of 170.In the end, Australia beat India by six wickets in their crucial Women’s T20 World Cup clash, knocking the Women in Blue out of the tournament. Chasing 171, Australia reached the target with an over to spare, thanks to a match-winning performance from Ellyse Perry, who was named player of the match for her knock of 56 runs. Earlier, Harmanpreet Kaur’s explosive half-century helped India post 170/4.
