Visakhapatnam, India – In a high-scoring Women's World Cup 2025 match, Australia defeated India by three wickets, successfully chasing a record target of 331. While the Indian team put up a formidable batting performance, a late-order collapse proved costly, a point emphasized by India's captain, Harmanpreet Kaur, in the post-match presentation.
India's innings began strongly, with openers Smriti Mandhana (80) and Pratika Rawal (75) establishing a 155-run partnership. The middle order contributed as well, with Richa Ghosh (32) and Jemimah Rodrigues (33) maintaining the scoring momentum. However, after reaching 294 for four in the 43rd over, the innings unraveled. India lost their last six wickets for just 36 runs, finishing at 330 all out in 48.5 overs. Annabel Sutherland exploited the collapse, claiming a five-wicket haul.
In the post-match presentation, Kaur acknowledged the strong start but expressed disappointment in the team's inability to capitalize in the final overs. "The way we started, we could have added 30-40 more runs," she stated. "We missed runs in the last six overs and that cost us". While praising the openers for their outstanding performance throughout the tournament, Kaur indirectly criticized the lower order for not taking responsibility and converting the solid foundation into a more imposing total. "Last five overs cost us today," Kaur said. "Last three games we were not able to bat in the middle overs. Our lower order took responsibility. Today the first 40 overs were good".
Australia's chase was anchored by Alyssa Healy's brilliant 142 off 107 balls. Ellyse Perry contributed an unbeaten 47, guiding the team to victory with an over to spare. Despite Shree Charani's impressive bowling performance of 3 for 41, the other Indian bowlers struggled to contain the Australian batters.
Kaur also addressed the issue of the sixth bowler, as Sneh Rana and Kranti Gaud conceded 83 and 73 runs respectively in their spells. Kaur stated that the team would discuss the bowling combination moving forward, acknowledging that the current strategy has generally brought them success. "We'll sit and discuss. This combination has given us success. Two bad games are not going to make a difference," she said.
With this loss, India now stands third in the World Cup standings. To secure a spot in the semi-finals, India needs to win at least three of their remaining four matches. Their upcoming matches are against England, New Zealand, and Bangladesh.
