The stage is set in Navi Mumbai this Sunday for what promises to be a thrilling finale to the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, as India and South Africa meet in the title clash. Throughout the tournament, both teams India and South Africa have been in commanding form, and both are coming off emphatic semifinal wins that demonstrate how evenly matched they are going into this final showdown.
Two teams India and South Africa, same haunting past, and a chance to finally set the record straight. The 2025 Women’s World Cup final has brought two familiar stories to a decisive chapter. India and South Africa have spent years chasing the elusive silverware, and they now find themselves one step away from rewriting their destinies.
A new world champion is guaranteed this Sunday – what remains uncertain is whose scars will finally heal. South Africa Women (SA W) will take on India Women (IND W) in the final of the Women’s World Cup 2025 on Sunday, November 2, at the Dr. D. Y. Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai.
IND -W vs SA -W : Previous Performances
For India, this is perhaps their most hard-earned final. Their journey has seen cracks appear in the face of tough defeats and pressure of epic proportions. But the team has belatedly shown their tendency to identify red flags and course-correct on the fly. They stumbled upon a near-perfect XI by the knockouts – and with it, their near-perfect game.
Now they have one final frontier to cross. On either side of India’s dominating 3-0 series sweep in the ICC Women’s ODI Championship 2022-25 was soul-crushing defeats to South Africa in World Cups. Between that no-ball in Christchurch and the Nadine de Klerk-inspired coup in Vizag, India have been the more commanding of the two in the format. That said, games of this magnitude have a way of levelling all equations.
India entered the tournament still burdened with their string of knockout defeats to Australia. Old doubts resurfaced when, in the midst of their campaign-threatening streak of losses, the hosts abjectly conceded two points despite putting on 330 on the board. However, they flipped the narrative in the semifinal – chasing down the highest total in Women’s ODI history to knock out the defending champions and book a spot in the final of a home World Cup.
Meanwhile, India Women sealed their place in the grand finale by defeating Australia Women in a thrilling semi-final encounter. Jemimah Rodrigues produced one of the most memorable performances of the tournament, guiding the Women in Blue to the final. The hosts will now look to script history by winning their maiden World Cup title in front of a passionate home crowd.
However cathartic that triumph was, India know too well from 2017 that a win against Australia in the semifinal doesn’t guarantee glory. It’s a feeling South Africa grasp just as deeply from their latest heartbreak.
South Africa’s defiance and growth was on ample display between their 69 all out against England and the 97 all out against Australia – the two embarrassing defeats that bookended their round-robin stage. England had been a thorn in their flesh, ending their promising campaigns in both 2017 and 2022 semifinals.
South Africa Women booked their spot in the summit clash with a commanding 125-run victory over England Women in the semi-final. Skipper Laura Wolvaardt led from the front with a brilliant knock, while Marizanne Kapp’s five-wicket haul dismantled the English batting lineup. The Proteas will be aiming to lift the coveted trophy for the first time in their history.
The Guwahati fiasco told another tale of missed opportunities. Yet, in the winning streak that followed, something shifted. Led by their talismanic skipper, they dismantled England with ruthless calm unshackled from the weight of their past. This is the first final without Australia or England in it – a testament to how far India and South Africa have both come. They stand here having conquered their worst fears. Now, they’re staring at the same truth – it’s time to conquer those nerves.
They’ve stood on this stage multiple times before, only to let it slip away repeatedly. For India, two previous ODI finals have ended in anguish. For South Africa this marks their third straight ICC final across formats without any silverware to show for it. On Sunday, they will take the field carrying heartbreak and expectations. But only one will find closure and the other, fresh scars.
IND -W vs SA -W : Head to Head
India lead 20-13 in 34 ODIs (1 no result). The World Cups record is at 3-all with South Africa having won all of the last three encounters dating back to the group game in 2017. Since the beginning of IWC 2022-25, India lead 5-1 with the only loss coming earlier in this tournament.
| Matches Played | 34 |
| India Women Won | 20 |
| South Africa Women Won | 13 |
| No Result | 01 |
| First-Ever Fixture | December 02, 1997 (IND W Won) |
| Most-Recent Fixture | October 09, 2025 (SA W Won) |
IND -W vs SA -W : Pitch and Weather Report
The pitch at the Dr. D. Y. Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai has largely favoured teams batting first. However, India Women broke the trend by successfully chasing down Australia Women’s target in the semi-final. Similarly, this final is also expected to offer good support for batters throughout both innings. Bowlers, on the other hand, will need to be precise with their lines and lengths, as any error could be punished severely.
Flat pitch, quick outfield and short boundaries will make for another high-scoring game. However, there’s also a bit of rain around to likely interrupt play. There is also a reserve day, just in case.
It’s a bit incomprehensible that it’s still raining in and around Mumbai in November. Unseasonal rains have been experienced over many parts of the country recently and more is expected on Sunday, especially after 5pm.
Conditions in Navi Mumbai will likely favour the batters, as they have so far, with dew possibly coming into the picture as well. There is a reserve day in case even a truncated match cannot be completed on Sunday. Play will resume on Monday, instead of starting over from the beginning, if the action spills over.
IND -W vs SA -W : Big picture – India, South Africa on the cusp of history
The two finalists at this World Cup have crossed many barriers in the last decade or so and even over the last month. South Africa pulled themselves together after the embarrassment of 69 all out and 97 all out, while India made it to the knockouts without beating any of the three teams that finished above them on the points table.
South Africa unearthed new finishers. India unearthed new heroes. Both teams took on their nemesis in the knockouts, with South Africa breaking the hoodoo England have had over them with and India enthralling the home crowd by overpowering the Australians. So now we have the first ODI World Cup final that features neither Australia nor England and the prospect of a brand new world champion.
By sending back two of the strongest teams in history, both India and South Africa stand of the cusp of history. The winner could reshape the contours of the women’s game in their homeland, if not globally. Both countries are still grappling with deep-rooted issues that hinder women’s access to education, employment and much else.
Irrespective of the outcome on Sunday, the occasion has the power to establish players like Nonkululeko Mlaba and Kranti Gaud – who overcame enormous hurdles growing up in under-resourced regions – as household names and encourage young women, and their parents, to make them the next Smriti Mandhana or Marizanne Kapp.
South Africa will be tasked with the challenge of not only quieting a 30,000-plus crowd, but also adapting to the conditions in Navi Mumbai, where they have yet to play a game this World Cup. India, on the other hand, will turn up at DY Patil stadium for their fourth game in a row. They won the previous three. South Africa have had more time to recover from their semi-final high. India not quite as much. In a game with this much at stake, even the finest margins matter.
The last time a women’s World Cup was staged here, the marquee event was relegated to smaller grounds because men’s domestic cricket was more popular. The prize money was hardly comparable with that in the men’s game, and bringing in crowds was a major task. The Lord’s final in 2017 was the first big break for women’s cricket. MCG took things to a different level in 2020. Navi Mumbai has a lot to live up to and early signs are that it will not disappoint.
IND -W vs SA -W : In the spotlight – Shafali Verma and Nadine de Klerk
Shafali Verma was plucked out of domestic T20s and put in as India’s opener in the semi-final. She bashed a couple of boundaries but Australia found a way through her soon enough. She will want to do better against South Africa, and previous evidence suggests she could. Shafali smashed a 53 off 46 against them at the 2022 World Cup. In 2024, she also hammered a Test double-century. The conditions are ripe and the time is apt for Shafali to put up a score and put the World Cup snub – she wasn’t picked in the original squad – behind her.
Nadine de Klerk took this World Cup by storm with a stunning knock against India – 84 not out off 54 balls – in the league stage and hasn’t looked back. She has struck ten sixes this tournament (joint-highest with Richa Ghosh), she has dispatched a boundary every 4.8 balls (joint-highest with Alyssa Healy) and boasts the best strike rate, of 136.69. South Africa may want to give her more time in the middle than the six balls she faced in the semi-final. Navi Mumbai offers good batting conditions and she can do a lot of damage.
IND -W vs SA -W : Vital Stats that matters
- Nonkululeko Mlaba has kept Smriti Mandhana fairly quiet in ODIs, conceding 67 runs off 81 balls while also dismissing her three times.
- Jemimah Rodrigues facing her Delhi Capitals team-mate Marizane Kapp could be a battle to watch out for. Kapp has dismissed Rodrigues twice, while giving away only 16 runs in 40 balls
- Kapp has also troubled Harmanpreet Kaur, having removed her four times for 67 runs in 80 balls
- Deepti Sharma will be looking to restrain the in-form Laura Wolvaardt, who has a strike rate of only 54.91 (95 runs off 173 balls) in this head-to-head. Deepti has also dismissed Wolvaardt thrice.
- South Africa have beaten India in each of their last three World Cup contests
- India are set to play their third ODI World Cup final, after 2005 and 2017. No team has played three finals and not lifted the trophy
- South Africa have struck 31 sixes this World Cup, the most by any team
- Wolvaardt (470) is 40 runs away from becoming the top-scorer in a single edition of a World Cup. Alyssa Healy holds the record with 509 during the 2022 edition
- Smriti Mandhana is 52 runs away from becoming the 10th woman, and second Indian, to 1000 runs in Women’s ODI world Cups
- Laura Wolvaardt needs 73 more to enter the top-three of all-time run-scorers in Women’s ODI World Cups
- This will be the first ODI World Cup final featuring neither Australia nor England
IND -W vs SA -W : Team News for India and South Africa
India Women :
India may have finally found their best XI in the semi-final, with batting depth till No. 8 and six bowling options. Radha Yadav was expensive on Thursday and Sneh Rana might be an option to replace her, except South Africa’s entire batting line-up is right-handed, so holding onto the left-arm spinner might work better than swapping her out for an offspinner.Whether India bring back offspinner Sneh Rana for left-arm spinner Radha Yadav is the only question.
Teams barely like to change a winning combination but India aren’t averse to positive changes anymore, going by their three games here. Radha was expensive against Australia on a flat track – 0/66 in eight overs, and Rana has a stellar record against South Africa in 2025 including her career-best 5/43 in the tri-series in Colombo on white-ball comeback. Rana’s addition also provides some batting cushion lower down the order where Radha is yet to prove herself with the bat at the highest level.
India Women (IND W) Probable XI : Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Amanjot Kaur, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Radha Yadav/Sneh Rana, Kranti Gaud, Shree Charani, Renuka Singh Thakur
South Africa Women :
Hard-hitting opener Tazmin Brits hurt her shoulder on Wednesday in Guwahati but insisted she would play the final, which South Africa with a combination question. They batted till No. 9 against England, and reducing a batting option – Anneke Bosch or Annerie Dercksen – for a bowler – Masabata Klaas – may not be a bad idea if the pitch is flat.
The first-time finalists too have a similar conundrum. They dropped Masabata Klaas for some batting depth instead, in the semifinal against England, and now with batting-friendly conditions expected in the final, they would be tempted to stick to their winning XI.
South Africa Women (SA W) Probable XI :Laura Wolvaardt (C), Tazmin Brits, Sune Luus, Anneke Bosch/Masabata Klaas, Annerie Dercksen, Marizanne Kapp, Sinalo Jafta (wk), Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Ayabonga Khaka, Nonkululeko Mlaba
IND -W vs SA -W : Probable Best Performers of the Match
Probable Best Batter: Harmanpreet Kaur
India Women’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur could be the key player in this high-stakes clash. She has amassed 240 runs in the tournament so far and played a composed knock against Australia Women in the semi-final. She is known for rising to the occasion in crucial matches, and will once again look to lead from the front and guide India to victory..
Probable Best Bowler: Marizanne Kapp