India beat South Africa to win the Women's World Cup for the first time
India won their maiden Women's Cricket World Cup by 52 runs in Navi Mumbai on 2 November 2025, after final defeats in 2005 and 2017.
India won the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup for the first time on 2 November 2025, beating South Africa by 52 runs in the final at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The venue was moved from Bengaluru. India had lost the finals of 2005 and 2017.
India made 298/7 in their 50 overs. Shafali Verma scored 87 off 78 balls, Deepti Sharma 58 and Smriti Mandhana 45. South Africa were bowled out for 246 in 45.3 overs, with Laura Wolvaardt making 101.
Awards
Deepti Sharma took 5/39 with the ball. Shafali Verma, who added 2/36 to her 87, was Player of the Match. Deepti was Player of the Tournament, having scored 215 runs and taken 22 wickets. Harmanpreet Kaur was India's winning captain. Wolvaardt's 571 runs are the most in a single Women's World Cup.
Alana King of Australia took 7/18 against South Africa during the tournament, the best bowling figures in the competition's history. South Africa's Marizanne Kapp has taken 44 wickets across World Cups from 2009 to 2025, the most in the competition's history.
What it means for the title tally
India become the fourth different winner of the competition, joining Australia (seven titles), England (four) and New Zealand (one). It was South Africa's first final, and the first final without either Australia or England.
The prize money was a record for the tournament: US$6.58m for India and US$3.24m for South Africa. The BCCI announced a Rs 51 crore reward for the team, and attendance at the final was 39,555.
The 2025 event was held from 30 September to 2 November in India and Sri Lanka, with Pakistan's matches played in Sri Lanka. India knocked out defending champions Australia in the semi-final. The ICC has decided to expand the tournament to ten teams from 2029.
