Laura Wolvaardt reveals Indias surprise factor that shocked South Africa in Womens World Cup final

South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt admitted Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur's surprise move to hand over the ball to Shafali Verma during their run chase caught the Proteas by surprise in the Women's ODI World Cup 2025 final. India defeated South Africa by 52 runs in the summit clash at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai to clinch their maiden ODI World Cup title.

Despite a brilliant ton from Wolvaardt, India managed to successfully defend the total of 298 runs to secure a comfortable victory in the final to etch their name in history. While Deepti Sharma was the pick of the bowlers for India in the final with her five-wicket haul, it was Shafali's game-changing spell that drifted the contest in India's favour.

Despite losing their first two wickets in quick succession, South Africa were cruising at one stage in the 299-run chase with Wolvaardt and Sune Luus going strong in the middle. However, Harmanpreet's decision to bring Shafali into the attack caught South Africa off guard. The part-time spinner ended up picking up two wickets in two overs to derail the Proteas' run chase.

"Didn't really expect her to bowl much today, so a bit of a surprise factor from them. She bowled front of the hand and really slow and was able to pick up a couple of wickets. In a World Cup final you don't want to lose wickets to a part-time bowler, but frustrating that she was able to pick up two big ones as well," Wolvaardt said at the post-match press conference after her side's defeat in the final.

"Then we almost had to err on the side of caution to not give her any more wickets. She bowled pretty well. Frustrating, I guess, because it's not really the person you plan for. But yeah, she played well," she added.

Shafali dismissed the dangerous Sune Luus on 25 in her very first over, before sending the experienced Marizanne Kapp packing cheaply on 4 off 5 balls in her next over. Her twin strikes shifted the momentum in India's favour as South Africa struggled in the run chase.

Earlier, Shafali slammed a magnificent 87-run knock to help India post a strong total of 298 runs on the board, batting first in the final. Despite the 21-year-old having bowled only 14 overs in her entire ODI career before the final, skipper Harmanpreet revealed she was convinced it was the youngster's day and thus she wanted to hand over the ball to her.

"When Laura and Sune were batting, they were looking really good. I just saw Shafali standing there, and the way she was batting, I knew it was our day. I thought I have to go with my gut feeling. If my heart was saying, I had to give her at least one over. And that was the turning point for us. When she came to the team, we spoke to her that we might need 2-3 overs, and she said if you give me bowling, I will bowl ten overs. Credit goes to her; she was so positive and she was there for the team. Salute her," Harmanpreet said, explaining the surprise move.

The decision paid off as Shafali's twin wickets played a pivotal role in helping India bundle out South Africa for 246 runs in the 299-run chase and win the final. Shafali, who was not part of India's original World Cup squad, came in as a replacement for injured Pratika Rawal and ended up winning the Player of the Match in the final for her remarkable all-round show.

It was an incredible turnaround for the 21-year-old, who was initially ignored from the team due to her ordinary record in ODIs.