Jhulan Goswami created history in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 match as she took her 40th wicket in the tournament to help India beat the West Indies by a massive margin.
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The India women’s cricket team put on an exhibition of dominance in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 match against the West Indies in Seddon Park, Hamilton. Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana blasted centuries to help India reach 317/8 against the fancied Windies team. Having won against England and New Zealand, the Windies were a force to be reckoned with. For the first half of the Windies innings, Deandra Dottin and Hayley Matthews tore into the Indian bowling.
But, Sneh Rana and Meghna Singh made inroads. It was Rana who opened the floodgates when she had Dottin caught for 62 as she top-edged the sweep. From 100/0, West Indies collapsed to 162 all out as they lost by a massive margin of 155 runs. With that loss, West Indies have slipped in the points table while India has climbed to the top. Apart from Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur, there was one more legend who etched her status as one of the best in the business.
Read More: Personal Milestones Don’t Matter to Me: Jhulan Goswami
Jhulan Goswami, who was taken apart for 35 runs in her first three overs, bounced back in her second spell. She dismissed Anisa Mohammed for 2 to create history. Jhulan Goswami took her 40th wicket in the ICC Women’s World Cup, which is the most by any bowler in the history of the tournament. Her 40 wickets are the most by any women bowler in the World Cup. Here is the complete list.
| Player | Matches | Wickets | Average | Economy Rate | Five-Wicket Haul |
| Jhulan Goswami | 31 | 40 | 20.77 | 3.37 | 0 |
| Lyn Fullston | 20 | 39 | 11.94 | 2.22 | 2 |
| Carole Hodges | 24 | 37 | 14.86 | 2.35 | 0 |
| Clare Taylor | 26 | 36 | 13.94 | 2.10 | 0 |
| Cathryn Fitzpatrick | 25 | 33 | 18.9 | 2.75 | 0 |
India were given a solid platform by Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur after the initial stutter. The partnership between Mandhana and Kaur drew comparisons with Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid’s stand in the 1999 World Cup match against Sri Lanka in Taunton. After India was reduced to 78/3, with Mithali Raj falling cheaply to Hayley Matthews, the duo stepped up.
Harmanpreet Kaur, who had smashed an attractive fifty in the match against New Zealand to come back to form, showed that she was here to sustain her brilliance. Both batters scored at an aggressive rate and turned the tables on the Windies bowlers. After getting their eyes in, Harmanpreet and Mandhana both tore into the bowling.
Both players passed fifty. It was Mandhana who notched up her century first, having hit another century against the Windies following up on her feat in 2017. Kaur neared her century with a six and four off Dottin. After notching up her century, India crossed 300 and presented West Indies with a challenge.
India made a poor start with Matthews and Dottin blasting boundaries at will. Jhulan Goswami conceded five boundaries in one over. Dottin hammered a 35-ball fifty as West Indies notched up their 100 in just the 12th over. But, Sneh Rana and Rajeshwari Gayakwad struck at regular intervals. West Indies never recovered and Jhulan Goswami had her moment in the sun.
In the 36th over, Jhulan produced a full ball that stopped on Anisa Mohammed. The batter chipped it to short mid-on where Taniya Bhatia took a good, tumbling catch. After the match, Mandhana and Harmanpreet shared the Player of the Match Trophy. Mandhana took a dig at the ICC after the Player of the Match award.
“Our strengths are really different because she is really good with spin and I like pace on the ball. So when the spinner comes on I give her the strike and when the pacer comes on she gives me the strike. I’m sure ICC will be giving another trophy and I’m sure they have enough budget to do that,” Mandhana said. India will now play England on March 16 in a massive match for both sides at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui. After that, India will play a crucial game against Australia in Auckland.
