Mandhana, Harmanpreet tons carry India to thrilling victory

Bengaluru: Ebullient hundreds of Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur were nearly upended by remarkable centuries from Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp but India kept their nerves to beat South Africa by four runs in a last-over thriller to take an unassailable 2-0 in ODI series here Wednesday. India had beaten South Africa by 143 runs in the first match here on Sunday. It was a matter of margin once India posted an imposing 325 for three, riding on Mandhana's 136 (120b, 18x4, 2x6) and Harmanpreet's unbeaten 103 (88b, 9x4, 3x6), their seventh and sixth one-day tons respectively. However, the Proteas

fought back through Kapp (114, 94b, 11x4, 3x6) and Wolvaardt (135 not out, 135b, 12x4 3x6), who added 184 runs off 170 balls for the fourth wicket, but could manage 321 for six.

The Chinnaswamy pitch stayed truer as compared to the previous match, and the Indian bowlers had to be precise in their line and length on this day to be effective. They did just that. At no point, the home bowlers allowed SA batters a free run, picking up wickets at regular intervals. Pacer Arundhati Reddy, who replaced Renuka Singh, gave India a good beginning, beating the defence of Tazmin Brits with a delivery that came in by that bit. However, Mandhana gave crowd the moment of the day when she accounted for Sune Luus, caught behind by Richa Ghosh, to bag her maiden international wicket. That brought together Wolvaardt and Kapp, who resisted the Indian spinners with excellent footwork and shot selection.

Earlier, Mandhana and Harmanpreet added 171 for the third wicket to lift India to a formidable total. Wolvaardt's decision to have a bowl seemed vindicated as new ball bowlers – Ayabonga Khaka and Masabata Klaas – found appreciable bounce and movement under overcast skies. In fact, Khaka started with two maidens in a row as Mandhana, whom she later dropped on 69 off left-arm spinner Nondumiso Shangase, and Shafali Verma struggled for a move-on. In fact, Mandhana took 18 balls to open her account. A period of consolidation followed post Shafali's ouster as Mandhana and Dayalan Hemalatha added 62 runs for the second wicket.

Brief Score

India: 325 for 3 in 50 overs (Smriti Mandhana 136, Harmanpreet Kaur 103 not out; Nonkululeko Mlaba 2/51). South Africa: 321 for 6 in 50 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 135 not out, Marizanne Kapp 114; Deepti Sharma 2/56, Pooja Vastrakar 2/54).