Kuala Lumpur: An utterly dominant India flaunted their embarrassment of riches to win a second successive U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup title with a nine-wicket shellacking of South Africa here on Sunday, the triumph giving a peek into the game’s most perfectly calibrated youth structure.
Having outclassed every team during their march to the final, India asserted themselves yet again, getting the job done with as many as 52 balls to spare while also becoming the first team to win the tournament without dropping a single game.
The biggest star of the day was all-rounder Gongadi Trisha, who complemented her excellent 3/15 with an unbeaten 33-ball 44 while batting.
South Africa, led by Kayla Reyneke, opted to bowl first, but their decision backfired quickly as India’s three-pronged spin attack bowled them out for 82.
Left-arm spinner Aayushi Shukla was the star of the show with figures of 4-2-9-2, while leg-spinner Trisha, who has also been a revelation with the bat, further underlined her all-round capabilities with her triple strikes with the ball.
Trisha once again anchored India’s chase with an unbeaten knock that was studded with eight fours.
Vice-captain Sanika Chalke (26 not out; 22 balls, 4×4) sealed the victory with a powerful heave to the square-leg boundary, forcing the young Indian players, draped in the Tricolour, to break into wild celebrations.
“I’ve dreamt of this moment for the past two years, and I can’t believe I hit the winning runs — it’s truly surreal. My teammates’ support made all the difference, and this moment is one I’ll cherish forever,” said Sanika after the match.
Left-arm spinner Parunika (4-0-6-2) provided India with an immediate breakthrough, dismissing opener Simone Lourens for a duck as South Africa struggled from the outset.
Right-arm seamer Shabnam Shakil (2-0-7-1) then removed the dangerous Jemma Botha, reducing South Africa to 20/2 by the end of the fourth over.
The pressure intensified when Aayushi bowled Diara Ramlakan, further denting South Africa’s innings.
At the halfway mark, South Africa were struggling at 33/3, unable to gain any momentum.
Captain Kayla Reyneke (7) tried to stabilise the innings but fell to Trisha, who later stumped Mieke van Voorst (23) to break a promising 30-run partnership for the seventh wicket.
Their skipper attempted to break free but perished while trying to go big, holing out to Trisha at long-off.
Despite Fay Cowling (15; 20 balls) and Mieke van Voorst putting up a small resistance, South Africa’s struggles continued.
The duo tried to rebuild but with just four overs remaining, South Africa were precariously placed at 58/5.
Trisha’s breakthrough then triggered a collapse and they were eventually bowled out in the final delivery of their innings.
India got off to a strong start in their chase, scoring briskly with a steady flow of singles and boundaries.
Trisha was once again the aggressor with her exquisite strokes, while Kamalini G also chipped in.
The opening partnership was moving smoothly until Kamalini was dismissed for 8, caught by Simone Lourens off Kayla Reyneke’s bowling, leaving India at 36/1 in 4.3 overs.
Sanika faced a few dot balls before settling in as South Africa’s wayward bowling and fielding also helped India’s cause.
Trisha , on the other hand, continued to exude confidence, accumulating runs with a mix of singles and boundaries.
Indian opener Trisha, who struck the only century of this edition of the tournament — 110 against Scotland — finished as the top-scorer with 309 runs from seven innings at a fantastic average of 77.25 and a strike rate of over 147.
She also returned with seven wickets at an economy rate of 6.42 across the seven outings.
Vaishnavi emerged as the tournament’s top wicket-taker, claiming 17 scalps at an outstanding economy rate of 4.35 from six matches, while Aayushi Shukla supported her brilliantly with 14 wickets from seven matches.
In the final, India were 71/1 at the halfway mark of their innings.
The defending champions enjoyed a flawless campaign, winning all their group-stage matches against the West Indies, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.
Their winning momentum continued in the Super Six stage with victories over Bangladesh and Scotland.
In the semi-final, India delivered a commanding performance against England to extend their unbeaten run to six matches.
