India dazzled away to victory by blitzing Bangladesh 114 runs in the women’s final opposite in Korogi Sports Park, Nisshin on Sunday in the Asian Games.
India, taking the toss, went ahead and chose to bat first and they did justice to the decision as well because the Indian batters played very strongly. Shafali Verma lit the fire on her maiden T20I century with a blistering 49-ball firecracker on the pitch.
Shafali got the wicket from the last over of India’s innings, leaving her unbeaten on 100. Her explosive knock included three fours and nine sixes as India posted an imposing 195/4 in their 20 overs. Also, she set a new record for India as the Leading 6 hitter in women’s T20IS.
Harmanpreet backed up with a cool streamer of 40 off 33 balls while Smriti Mandhana hit 37. Mandhana also broke the record set by New Zealand’s Suzie Bates (4,758 runs), for the most runs in women’s T20I cricket in her maiden 200 matches.
While chasing, Bangladesh could muster only 81 runs to beat India’s bowling line-up despite their fall as a unit in last over. Deepti Sharma started the day for the Indians with three wickets followed by Nandani Sharma on three wickets, one of which was coming straight off the bat of the initial ball.
The emphatic win propels India to the final where they will take on Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Sri Lanka had posted a defeat to Pakistan in their semi-final match.
The defending Asian Games champions India will now aim to defeat the nations with another gold in the tournament with a comprehensive show this time.