India Women beat Zimbabwe Women by nine wickets in 1st ODI
India Women won the opening ODI against Zimbabwe Women at Vadodara by nine wickets, chasing 198 in 27.1 overs to finish on 200 for one. Pratika Rawal made an unbeaten 100 off 96 balls and was named player of the match.
Zimbabwe Women, put in to bat, were bowled out for 197 in 49.5 overs. It was the first women’s ODI meeting between the two sides.
The details
Shree Charani took career-best figures of 4/23 and Kranti Gaud added three wickets. Beloved Biza top-scored for Zimbabwe Women with 62, her fourth ODI half-century. According to the Tribune, she became the second-youngest woman to score an ODI fifty against India, behind England’s Sarah Taylor.
In the chase, Rawal hit 15 fours for her third ODI hundred. Shafali Verma remained unbeaten on 64 off 33 balls, while Smriti Mandhana made 32 before being dismissed. Rawal spoke about her earlier injury layoff at the presentation. The Tribune reports that India finished the chase with 22.5 overs to spare.
What it means for India
The match marked India’s return to ODI cricket after nearly eight months away from the 50-over game, as reigning world champions. It was also Mandhana’s first ODI as India’s full-time captain.
India Women had also won T20Is against Zimbabwe Women in the Zimbabwe Women tour of India, 2026: by 4 wickets on 16 October, by 9 wickets on 18 October and by 92 runs on 20 October.
What’s next
The three-match ODI series continues with the second match on Sunday, 25 October at 2:00 PM IST. The third follows on Wednesday, 28 October, also at 2:00 PM IST. Both matches are in Baroda.
India Women’s next fixture after that is the first match against South Africa Women on Wednesday, 9 December at 1:30 PM IST.
