The first innings of the Test match between India’s women and South Africa’s women made history with multiple new records being set in the world of cricket. India declared their innings on the second day of play after posting a remarkable total of 603 for six in Chennai, setting the highest total in women’s Test cricket and becoming the first team to surpass the 600-run mark in first-class cricket.
On the opening day, India scored 525 for 4, the most runs ever scored by any team in a day’s play of Test cricket, for both men and women. This also marked the first instance of a team scoring over 500 runs on the first day of a women’s Test match.
Shafali Verma emerged as the star of the match, scoring 205 runs to achieve the fastest double century in women’s Test history. She also became the first woman to score over 200 runs in a day in a Test match and, at the age of 20 years and 152 days, the second-youngest woman to achieve a Test double-century. Her partnership with Smriti Mandhana yielded 292 runs, setting the record for the highest opening stand in women’s Test cricket. Additionally, the partnership between Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh accumulated 143 runs, marking the highest fifth-wicket stand in women’s Tests.
Reflecting on her performance, Shafali Verma stated, “Today, the ball was coming on well and my scores in the last three ODIs pushed me to just think one thing, that I shouldn’t get out and I should play through the day. So the idea was to back my strengths, take some time, and find a way to stay at the wicket.”
In response, South Africa struggled to match India’s dominant performance, posting 266 runs in their first innings and reaching 232/2 in their second innings on day three of the match, still trailing behind India’s mammoth total.
