Colombo: After her match-winning performance against arch-rivals Pakistan in the ICC Women’s World Cup, pacer Kranti Gaud said she does not pay attention to talks about the India-Pakistan rivalry, focusing solely on her bowling.
Despite Sidra Amin’s historic innings—the highest-ever score by a Pakistani batter against India in women’s ODIs—Pakistan fell short as India’s spinners, particularly Deepti Sharma, delivered a commanding performance. Sharma’s 3/45, combined with Gaud’s 3/20, helped India secure an 88-run victory in the Colombo clash on Sunday.
This win extends India’s unbeaten record against Pakistan in the Women’s World Cup to 5-0 and in women’s ODIs to 12-0. The match follows three recent encounters between the two nations in the men’s Asia Cup, where India completed a clean sweep amid off-field controversies, including the widely discussed ‘handshake row’ and the trophy ceremony incident involving Pakistan’s Interior Minister and ACC president Mohsin Naqvi.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Kranti said, “I don’t really know much about that because this was my first match, and honestly, I do not pay attention to all that India-Pakistan talk. There is nothing like that for me. I just focus on my job—my duty is to bowl, and that is what I do.”
She added that her discussions with the team management focus on maintaining line and length, without any instructions to change her approach or add variations. “The message has been simple: keep doing what I am doing in all the matches,” she said.
Batting first, India were restricted to 247, with Diana Baig (4/69) putting up a historic effort to bowl out India for the first time in ODIs. Sidra Amin’s 81 off 106 balls, including nine fours and a six, went largely unsupported as Pakistan were bowled out for 159 in 43 overs.
During the chase of 248, Pakistan began strongly but quickly fell behind after an early burst from Gaud reduced them to 26/3 in 12 overs. Sidra Amin and Natalia Pervaiz (33 off 46 balls) added 69 for the fourth wicket, but Gaud’s next strike triggered a collapse. Despite Sidra’s 41-run partnership with Sidra Nawaz (14), Pakistan could not recover as Deepti Sharma and Sneh Rana (2/38) dismantled the middle and lower order. In total, Indian spinners claimed five wickets, with pacers taking three.
