Visakhapatnam, Oct 9 (NationPress) Richa Ghosh delivered a stunning performance, mastering the art of building an ODI innings with a score of 94 runs off 76 balls. Her remarkable effort, combined with a fiery cameo from Sneh Rana, propelled India to a formidable total of 251 all out against South Africa in the 10th match of the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup held here on Thursday.

Entering the game at a precarious position of 102/6, Richa struck 11 fours and 4 sixes, forging a crucial partnership of 88 runs for the eighth wicket with Sneh to help India recover and set a competitive score. This innings marked the highest score by a player batting at No. 8, providing the bowlers with a defendable total.

With her explosive hitting, Richa and Sneh turned the momentum in India's favor as South Africa faltered in their bowling and fielding, missing several catches. Richa effectively carried the team, handling early pressure and unleashing an array of remarkable shots, culminating in 98 runs scored in the last 10 overs.

After being asked to bat first, Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal provided a solid foundation, achieving the best power-play score for India in the World Cup with 55 runs without loss in the initial 10 overs.

Smriti, cautious after previous failures, managed to hit one four and India's first six of the match, lofting Ayabonga Khaka over her head. However, she fell attempting another big shot just after the mandatory Power-play.

Pratika Rawal (37 off 56) contributed 28 runs alongside Harleen Deol before she too fell victim to Tazmin Brits off Tumi Sekhukhune in another soft dismissal.

Harleen (13 off 23), captain Harmanpreet Kaur (9), Jemimah Rodrigues (0), and Deepti Sharma quickly followed suit to the dressing room as India collapsed from 55 for no loss at the end of the 10th over to 102/6 at the halfway mark, all failing to adapt as the South Africans tightened their grip.

The South African bowlers, including Ayabonga Khaka and Nadine de Klerk, along with spinners Nonkululeko Mlaba and Chloe Tryon, executed precise line and length, restricting the Indian batters and resulting in 86 balls without a boundary as India's scoring rate plummeted from five runs an over to three at one point.

Richa shattered the scoring drought in the 29th over against Tryon and continued to do so on a couple of occasions, injecting some momentum into the innings. She and Amanjot Kaur, who returned to the XI after missing the previous match due to illness, added 37 runs for the seventh wicket, pushing the score past 150 before Amanjot was dismissed for 13 off 44 balls.

Continuing her assault, Richa slog-swept a slower delivery from de Klerk over deep midwicket for her second six of the day, complementing her earlier four boundaries. Sneh Rana struck back-to-back boundaries against Mlaba in the 43rd over and found the fence again off de Klerk in the next over.

With a boundary and another four off de Klerk, Richa reached her first fifty of the ODI World Cup off just 53 balls. The duo of Sneh and Richa capitalized on the scoring, hammering 16 runs in one over as India approached the 200-run milestone. Their partnership for the eighth wicket reached a half-century off 36 balls, adding respectability to the total.

Richa concluded the innings with a flourish, smashing two fours and a six off consecutive deliveries from Khaka, amassing 19 runs in the 47th over.

The match commenced an hour late due to a brief rain spell and a damp outfield; however, no overs were lost.

Brief scores: India 251/10 in 49.5 overs (Richa Ghosh 94, Pratika Rawal 37, Sneh Rana 33; Chloe Tryon 3-32, Marizanne Kapp 2-45, Nadine de Klerk 2-52) against South Africa.