Shafali Verma made the most of her chances as India stormed into yet another Women’s Asia Cup final with a comfortable 40-run win over Bangladesh on Thursday.
On a slow surface where most batters struggled to find their timing, Shafali produced the standout innings of the match, smashing 64 off 40 balls to lift India to 149/6. The opener was given three lives, dropped on 6, 11 and 56, but Bangladesh were made to pay dearly for each missed opportunity.
Shafali attacked from the outset and found scoring options all around the ground. Her innings featured a front-foot pull against Marufa Akter, a reverse sweep and several powerful strikes down the ground against the spinners. She also struck three sixes against spin to finish with a strike rate of
160.
India reached 45/1 in the powerplay but found it difficult to accelerate once the fielding restrictions were lifted. Pratika Rawal, under pressure after a series of low scores, began positively with a textbook cover drive against Akter. She later stepped out to hit a six but was dismissed by the same bowler for 20 off 24.
Richa Ghosh contributed 21 off 16 after taking time to settle, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur remained unbeaten on 24 off 28. Harmanpreet struggled to get going, scoring just four runs from her first 16 deliveries, before finding some momentum with two sixes towards the end.
Bangladesh’s bowling attack, which had been impressive throughout the tournament, kept India’s established batters quiet for large periods. However, four dropped catches proved costly and allowed India to finish with a total that eventually proved more than sufficient.
Given the nature of the pitch and Bangladesh’s batting limitations, India were confident of defending 150. Their bowlers justified that belief, restricting Bangladesh to 109/7 in their 20 overs.
Deepti Sharma led the way with 3/26, while Shree Charani and Prema Rawat picked up one wicket each as India’s spin attack exploited the conditions. Bangladesh’s chase never gathered serious momentum despite the early intent shown by Juairiya Ferdous, who made 14 off 18.
Both Ferdous and opening partner Dilara Akter, who scored 21 off 26, eventually fell while attempting to clear the mid-wicket boundary. Kranti Gaud produced one of India’s few outstanding fielding moments when she completed a running catch to dismiss Akter.
India, seven-time champions, will face either Pakistan or Sri Lanka in Sunday’s final. They remain the most successful team in the competition, with four 50-over titles and three T20 titles. India will also be keen to avoid a repeat of their shock defeat to Sri Lanka in the previous edition.
