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In the 2025 ICC Women’s World Cup Final, India’s innings ended not with a roar, but with a long sigh. A brilliant start by Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana had set the sky on fire – 170/1 in just 30 overs. The air smelled of history. India’s first-ever Women’s World Cup title seemed within arm’s reach.
But what followed was an inexplicable slowdown that turned euphoria into eerie silence. And at the center of that stillness stood Deepti Sharma – 58 runs off 58 balls, a knock that reads efficient but felt excruciating. The innings is over, but the story isn’t. South Africa are about to begin their chase, and whether Deepti’s cautious approach will be remembered as control or catastrophe depends entirely on the next 50 overs. But for now, this 58 looks like the calm that might have drowned the storm.
The setup for glory that never took off
India couldn’t have asked for a better beginning. Shafali Verma unleashed a masterclass in fearless hitting – 87 runs of dominance, peppered with cover drives that could split granite. Smriti Mandhana’s elegance complemented the chaos perfectly, and by the halfway mark, the scoreboard was sprinting towards the mythical 330 mark.
It was the kind of start that forces the opposition into panic mode. South Africa’s bowlers looked tired, their fielders anxious, their captain searching for answers. And then, Deepti Sharma walked in. Her entry should’ve been a continuation of carnage. Instead, it became an emotional gear shift – from attack to anxiety. What was meant to be a blitz morphed into a blockade. The stage for history suddenly looked like a lecture on ‘how not to finish what you started.’
The partnership that looked calm but killed the fire
Deepti joined Harmanpreet Kaur, and on paper, it looked perfect – two experienced heads to anchor the innings after a top-order explosion. In reality, it was like watching two artists forget their brushstrokes. Their 52-run stand, lasting 10 overs, did not stabilize – it suffocated.
South Africa’s bowlers, who were moments ago begging for mercy, suddenly began breathing again. Nonkululeko Mlaba and Ayabonga Khaka turned into silent assassins, squeezing singles out of a team that was built to hit boundaries.
India’s scoring rate, once roaring above six, crashed to under five. In a final, where modern cricket demands ruthless aggression, Deepti’s measured caution felt like a betrayal of the platform gifted by her openers. Every dot ball felt like a brick in the wall India was unknowingly building between themselves and glory.
The fifty that felt like a funeral march
Deepti’s fifty should have been celebrated – she did what many cannot in a pressure final: she held her nerve. But context is cruel. This wasn’t the time to survive; it was the time to soar. Her 58 off 58 balls reads neat, balanced, even respectable.
But under the microscope of momentum, it is damning. It was a knock that refused to evolve, singles when boundaries were screaming to be hit, defensive pushes when sweeps were begging to be played. Harmanpreet, too, mirrored the caution, but it was Deepti who dictated the tempo. When she reached her half-century and raised her bat, it felt like the applause was stuck in people’s throats. It was not relief, it was resignation. The final overs were meant to be fireworks; instead, they turned into a candlelight vigil for India’s lost rhythm.
The collapse of intent: From control to chaos
The last ten overs were supposed to be India’s finishing act, the crescendo of months of preparation. Instead, they were the slow unraveling of ambition. India scored only 69 runs in the final ten, a number that doesn’t just underwhelm – it undercuts everything that came before.
Deepti’s run-out on the final ball wasn’t just unfortunate; it was symbolic. A mix-up, confusion, hesitation – all metaphors for how India’s innings had lost clarity since her arrival. The fear of failure had replaced the hunger for glory. Even as India crossed 290, the collective sigh in the stadium suggested everyone knew it should have been more. Those 15–20 missing runs might be the invisible trophy South Africa will lift if they chase this down. Because in finals, numbers matter, but intent matters more.
Cricket’s beauty lies in its cruel patience, it allows redemption, but never guarantees it. As South Africa prepare to bat, Deepti Sharma’s innings hangs in the air like a question mark, not an answer. If India somehow defend this total – Renuka Singh, and Deepti herself redeem this slowdown with the ball – this knock might be reframed as “measured maturity.”
But if South Africa cross the line with ease, this 58 will become an epitaph, carved deep into India’s cricketing conscience. It will go down as the innings that took control when chaos was needed, that played safe when courage was required. For now, India hasn’t lost – but Deepti’s 58 might already have written the prologue of how they could.
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