7 months ago
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Leg-spinner Alana King’s spellbinding wizardry formed the cornerstone of Australia’s seven-wicket triumph implicit South Africa arsenic the defending champions concluded the Women’s World Cup league signifier firmly connected apical of the array successful Indore connected Saturday (October 25, 2025).
With the win, Australia secured the apical spot successful the league signifier and volition look hosts India successful the semifinals astatine Navi Mumbai connected Thursday (October 22).
India, adjacent if they triumph against Bangladesh successful their last league crippled connected Sunday (October 26), tin decorativeness nary higher than fourth.
King’s (7/18 successful 7 overs) artistry was connected afloat show astatine the Holkar stadium arsenic the wily limb spinner ran done South Africa’s batting line-up with her maiden seven-wicket haul to vessel them retired for a paltry 97 successful conscionable 24 overs.
The Australian batters past overhauled the people with 199 balls to spare.
King produced a masterclass successful power and guile, showcasing wherefore she remains 1 of the astir skilful wrist-spinners successful the modern game, returning with her career-best figures successful women’s ODIs.
Her effort not lone marked the best-ever by an Australian bowler successful WODIs but besides the champion idiosyncratic bowling show successful a Women’s World Cup match.
Chasing the humble target, Australia stumbled initially with opener Phoebe Litchfield (5) and seasoned Ellyse Perry (0) falling early, arsenic South African bowlers concisely extended the contest.
But with truthful small to chase, Beth Mooney (42) and Georgia Voll (38 not out) shared a 76-run basal to widen Australia’s unbeaten tally successful the contest.
Earlier, King’s victims included immoderate of South Africa’s biggest names — Sune Luus, Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Chloe Tryon and Nadine de Klerk arsenic she single-handedly ripped done the South African enactment up. Her 7 overs included 2 maidens.
In a contention that volition determine the league person aft the league stage, the unsafe Laura Wolvaardt (31) looked successful imperious interaction aboriginal on, cracking 7 boundaries successful the archetypal six overs.
She took afloat vantage of Megan Schutt’s wayward lines, dispatching 4 boundaries successful 1 over, 3 of them exquisite off-side drives and 1 a fortuitous borderline past the keeper.
But Wolvaardt’s fluent innings came to an extremity erstwhile she miscued a changeable disconnected Schutt, with King completing a crisp diving drawback astatine abbreviated mid-wicket. Soon after, Tazmin Brits’ painstaking 19-ball six ended courtesy of Kim Garth, leaving South Africa stuttering.
From there, it was the Alana King show. Luus was the archetypal to fall, attempting a large heave lone to connection an casual drawback to Annabel Sutherland astatine mid-on.
Four balls later, King lured Marizanne Kapp into a mendacious changeable with a teasing transportation wide extracurricular off; the all-rounder misjudged the formation and picked retired Garth down square, leaving the Proteas reeling astatine 43 for 4.
Sinalo Jafta (29) tried to inject immoderate momentum, slamming 3 boundaries disconnected Annabel Sutherland successful the 15th over, but King’s spell of wizardry was acold from over.
She struck doubly successful speedy succession successful the 16th over, archetypal uprooting Annerie Dercksen’s disconnected stump, past having Chloe Tryon caught by Ashleigh Gardner astatine mid-wicket for a aureate duck.
Jafta continued to defy alongside Nadine de Klerk, uncovering 5 boundaries successful a little counterattack, but her defiance ended erstwhile King breached her defence to uproot her disconnected stump, leaving South Africa’s innings successful implicit disarray.
King past bowled a ripping leg-break that knocked Masabata Klaas disconnected stump retired of the ground.
