Delhi, 11 October (H.S.): South Africa all-rounder Nadine de Klerk openly criticized India’s use of injury timeouts as a tactic to disrupt momentum during their recent Women’s World Cup league match. Despite India’s attempts to slow the game, South Africa secured a hard-fought three-wicket victory on a spin-friendly pitch.

De Klerk, who played a brilliant unbeaten 84 to lead the chase, described the injury stoppage involving Indian player Ghosh as “quite tactical.” “We questioned whether something really happened,” she said.

“It was obviously quite tactical from India to try and slow the game down. But in the end, it worked out quite well because we got a bit of refreshment and it gave me a few seconds to restart my head and my game plans.”

Chasing 252, South Africa were 211 for seven after 46 overs, with De Klerk on 45 off 39 balls. She targeted the Indian pacers in the final overs, taking advantage of a pitch that made seam bowling easier to score off than spin. De Klerk smashed two sixes and a four off Kranti Gaud in the 47th over and finished the match with two sixes off Amanjot Kaur.

“The spinners bowled well in the middle, but we knew seam bowling was the easier option to attack,” she said. “It was about building the partnership and then taking on the pacers.”

De Klerk attributed her innings’ success to simplicity and backing her natural aggressive game without over-hitting. “It was about timing the ball well on this good wicket,” she added.

The victory boosted South Africa’s campaign in the Women’s World Cup while leaving India to reflect on their tactics and resilience in high-pressure games.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar