India Women brought up their sixth straight Asia Cup win in as many tournaments, with Mithali Raj’s (73 from 65 balls) sterling knock being the difference between her side and Pakistan. Batting first, India got to 121/5 in their quota of overs. Bisma Mahroof’s side were in the hunt at the halfway mark but the Indian spinners chocked run-scoring at the death to hand their side a 17-run win.
Mithali Raj failed to get any support from her fellow batters. In supreme touch throughout the tournament, the 34-year-old gave put in her best display in the final. Jhulan Goswami’s big hits in the final overs ensured that Pakistan needed to score a touch more than six runs an over to win the tie.
Pakistan were in the hunt when Javeria Khan and Maroof were keeping the scoreboard moving. Spinners Anuja Patil and Preeti Bose were parsimonious in the final overs, stifling the Pakistani batters from going for the big hits.
Brief scores:
India 121/5 in 20 overs (Mithali Raj 73 not out, Jhulan Goswami 17; Anam Amin 2/24) beat Pakistan 104/6 (Bismah Mahroof 25; Ekta Bisht 2/22) by 17 runs