India Loses to South Africa by Three Wickets, Harmanpreet Kaur Blames Top Order Batters for the Loss

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Indian women’s cricket team captain, Harmanpreet Kaur, blames the top-order batters for their loss against South Africa. Richa Ghosh's 94 runs off 77 balls helped Team India to recover from a bad start. However, South Africa won the match with a lead of 149 runs.  

India failed to reach the target of 251 runs and lost 6 wickets at 102. This marked India’s first defeat in the entire tournament. SA’s win is attributed to a strong batting performance by Nadine de Klerk, who scored an unbeaten 84 runs, and Laura Wolvaardt, who scored 70 runs. 

Harmanpreet Kaur’s Take on the Final Match

Harmanpreet Kaur said, “We didn't take the responsibility as a top-order. We have to change things. We have to get the good totals. It is a long tournament. It was a tough game, but (there are) lots of learnings. We need to keep ourselves in the positive frame (of mind).” She remarked that both teams played well, even though India’s batting lineup collapsed. 

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The Indian women’s cricket team captain said, “In the end, Chloe and de Klerk batted, they showed it was a very good pitch and they deserved to win with the way they batted.”

De Klerk’s Response After Defeating India

De Klerk, who won player of the match during the match against India, said there isn’t a bigger achievement than defeating the Indian team in their home ground. She further added, “Look, I am lost for words. We have done lots of good things, and to finish off the game, take the game deep and get over the line is great.”

Klerk also praised her team members, saying, “We just had to take it deep. We are a very good side in the backend. Even if we need 7 or 8 (runs per over), we will be able to do it. Chloe took the pressure off me, also Laura was great.”

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In brief, Harmanpreet Kaur has revealed the reason for India’s defeat against South Africa in the Women’s World Cup match. According to Kaur, India’s top order batsmen did not perform well. On the other hand, De Klerk, the player of the match in India vs South Africa, shares that there's no other achievement like winning against India in their backyard.