From crucial wickets to calm finishing, Deepti Sharma proved in the WWC 2025 Final why she’s India’s most dependable player.
India’s all-rounder Deepti Sharma was named Player of the Series in the recently concluded 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup. She scored 215 runs at a strike rate of 30.71 with 3 fifties, and picked up 22 wickets in 9 matches. Her all-round skills were crucial in India’s successful journey in the World Cup. Deepti became the first player to score a half-century and take a five-wicket haul in a World Cup knockout match (men or women).
Deepti was consistent not only with the bat but with the ball as well. She was captain Harmanpreet Kaur’s go-to player whenever India needed to pick up wickets to break a stand, or rescue or prop India’s innings.
A look at Deepti’s performance in the World Cup shows how the all-rounder’s performance was worth in gold, and she was easily India’s most valuable player.
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Deepti Sharma: The backbone of India’s middle order
Throughout the tournament, Deepti Sharma was the glue that held India’s innings together. She made three fifties in crunch situations, and a few useful cameos while batting at No 5 or lower. In the first league game against Sri Lanka, India were struggling at 120/4 by the 25th over. Coming to bat at No 6, Deepti made a run-a-ball 53 to take India to a winning score of 269/8 before she was the last batter out.
In the semis against Australia, she played a vital cameo of 17-ball 24 to help India chase down a mammoth 339. But her most crucial knock came in the final against South Africa where she made 58-ball 58 to take India to a winning total of 298/7 before she was dismissed on the last ball of the innings.
What these knocks showed about Deepti was her resilience and character to bat during the tough phases of an innings to take India to a position of strength. She played sensibly and as per the demands of the match situation. “I wanted to play according to the situation. Enjoyed a lot,” she said about her fifty in the final.
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Her off-breaks were too hot to handle
Deepti showed how good of a bowler she is with her off-breaks. During the tournament, Deepti bowled a great line, always attacking the stumps, and giving no room for the batters to free their arms. Her five-wicket haul in the final showed the class and range of Deepti, the bowler.
She broke a crucial stand of 69 runs between Laura Wolvaardt and Annerie Dercksen. Deepti bowled an unplayable yorker that shattered the stumps of Dercksen. Her mixing of deliveries in terms of pace, line and length saw captain Laura play loose airy shots and hole out in the deep.
Also, Deepti did well in the middle-overs with the ball where wickets are hard to come by as opposition looks to consolidate the innings by rotating the strike. But Deepti excelled in putting the brakes on South Africa’s scoring by taking crucial wickets, and turning the game on its head. In the middle-overs during the World Cup, Deepti was the second-best bowler for India with 8 wickets after Shree Charani’s 11 wickets. However, she topped the charts in death overs as she scalped 10 wickets at an average of 9.10 during the tournament.
Deepti Sharma- India’s bankable star
Deepti proved to be India’s most bankable player as she contributed with both bat and ball in different phases of the game during the tournament. Her batting was spot on as she played according to the match situation to rescue India a few times during the tournament. Her bowling was the revelation as she bagged a fifer in the final, and took the second-most wickets in a single World Cup for women.
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