The Mithali Raj-led Railways side romped home to an easy win in the final of the 2021 edition of the Women’s Senior One-Day Trophy against Jharkhand. It was their 12th title in the last 14 years. Jharkhand were bowled out for 167 batting first, and Railways chased it down with ease.
Railways added a 12th title to their kitty as they beat Jharkhand in the final of the Women’s Senior One-Day Cup 2021. It was a tournament that they dominated, brushing aside almost every side they faced.
In the final, Jharkhand Women won the toss and had no hesitation in batting first at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. The two openers, Niral Rashmi and Indrani Roy, started fluently. The duo struck five boundaries in the first 33 deliveries of the game, with Rashmi scoring four of those. However, the Railways’ opening bowlers Meghna Singh and Ekta Bisht, came back strongly. The latter first dismissed Rashmi for 19 before Singh picked up two wickets in as many balls as she dismissed both Ritu Kumari and Radhey Sonia for a duck. Durga Murmu joined the tournament’s leading run-getter in the middle and shared a 60-run stand.
But Railways all-rounder Sneh Rana ran through the Jharkhand middle-order, which saw Jharkhand slip from 90/3 to 138/7 and eventually 167 allout. Rana picked up three wickets while Bisht finished with a couple of scalps. Poonam Yadav picked up a wicket as well. Jharkhand skipper Mani Niharika ran out of partners and was stranded on 39 not out.
In reply, Railways lost an early wicket in Nuzhat Parween, who was run out in the second over. However, opener Sabbhineni Meghana and Punam Raut steadied the ship and put on 107 runs for the second wicket. Both batters scored half-centuries before they were dismissed in the space of four overs as Ravinder Devyani picked up both those wickets.
Mona Meshram and Sneh Rana came in, wiped out the remaining runs, and took Railways over the line with 13 overs to spare. Meshram remained unbeaten on 19 while Rana smashed 34 off 22 balls (five fours and a six), and the duo shared an unbeaten 45-run stand for the fourth wicket.
Brief Scores: Jharkhand Women 167 all out (Roy 49, Rana 3-33, Singh 2-22) lost to Railways Women 169/3 (Raut 59, Meghana 53) by seven wickets.
