Women’s Test: Sneh Rana scalps 10, India beat SA by 10 wickets
India women celebrate after defeating South Africa on the 4th and last day of the one-off Test against South Africa at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Monday.
Chandigarh: The Indian women’s cricket team has been on a roll in Test cricket at home in the last seven months. On Monday, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side completed a hat-trick of Test triumphs at home winning the one-off Test against South Africa in Chennai by 10 wickets.
Seven months ago, India beat England and Australia in Tests played in Mumbai. This comprehensive win marks the joint-longest winning streak in women’s Tests, under Kaur’s captaincy. India had three Test wins in a row between 2006 and 2014, while Australia have had three such streaks.
On the fourth and final day, India chased down a fourth innings target of 37 to seal victory, but only after South Africa had waged a gritty battle.
Spinners Sneh Rana, Deepti Sharma and Rajeshwari Gayakwad gelled well to finally dismiss South Africa, after following on, for 373 in reply to India’s mammoth first innings 603/6 declared. South Africa were 266 all out in the first innings.
Off-spinner Rana, 30, bettered her match-winning haul of seven wickets against Australia.
The 30-year-old claiming a match haul of 10 wickets. Her two second innings scalps made her only the second Indian woman to claim a ten-wicket haul in Tests. She returned match figures of 10/188. Pace bowler Jhulan Goswami had taken 10/78 against England in the 2006 Taunton Test.
South Africa’s second inning fightback on the final day was led by Laura Wolvaardt (122), Marizanne Kapp (31) and Nadine de Klerk (61), after Sune Luus had made 109. India openers Shafali Verma (24) and Shubha Satheesh (13), who came in for Smriti Mandhana, needed only 9.2 overs to knock off the target.
There was a delayed start on Monday due to a drizzle. Wolvaardt, who brought up her century in 259 balls, faced 314 deliveries and hit 16 fours. In the morning, Deepti Sharma trapped Kapp leg before and Rana removed Delmi Tucker for nought. Just before lunch, left-arm spinner Gayakwad gave India an important breakthrough by having SA captain Wolvaardt leg before at the score on 281/5.
Later, it was Nadine de Klerk’s solid defence which held India at bay. She hit her first test half-century and stayed at the wicket for nearly four hours before being the last SA wicket to fall. At tea, SA were 336/8 and trailed by one run with de Klerk at the crease, who stood tall in a fine show of defiance.
It was the final session which witnessed brilliant bowling from India. Part-time spinner Shafali Verma bowled Masabata Klaas and Gayakwad grabbed de Klerk’s wicket, leaving the hosts with a target of 37 to get for the win.
An elated Kaur said: “They batted well and did not give us an easy win and we had to work hard for it. Credit goes to Smriti and Shafali who set up a platform for us. Everyone in the team contributed with the bat. The way we fielded, it was not easy to field for so many overs in these conditions. Kudos to our bowlers, especially our spinners. They kept bowling and had that belief that they could take those wickets to win us the game.
“The way the bowlers played in the last two Tests, they showed that they can keep bowling and keep creating chances. When we came in the morning, we knew we had just 100 runs in the pocket and that we had to be careful, not give them easy boundaries. But we also had to keep looking for wickets. We planned really well and stuck to that,” she added.
Rana, the Player-of-the-Match, said: “It is a great feeling whenever you can contribute for your team, especially in such situations. It is an amazing feeling. At the start, it was difficult for the spinners. Later on, there was spin and bounce. I would like to give credit to the SA batters for the way they batted… We were always in the game and believed we could win it.”
The teams now play in a three-match T20I series at the same venue.
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