India trounce Netherlands
India pulled off their second consecutive victory in the Women's World Cup defeating
Netherlands by a huge margin of 154 runs here in Linchon (New Zealand) on Saturday.
India rode on the fine knocks by Anjum Chopra (69),Mithali Raj (51) and Hemlata Kala (56) to pile up 275 for four
in their allotted 50 overs after having put in to bat by Holland.
Set to score 276, the Netherlands could just crawl to 121
for six as Indian bowlers kept a total check on the runs.
Anjum Chopra top-scored for India facing 113 balls while
Hemalata Kala needed just 40 for her 56 runs.
Their stand provided India the necessary boost which
persisted through the match after the last World Cup's
semifinalists had lost their skipper Anju Jain (32) early on.
The win took India on to four points and jointly lead the
eight-team competition with all-win record. Defending
champions Australia also have four points.
For Holland, C Verheul was the only saviour as she remained unbeaten on 46 after Pate Beest (33) and C Salomons
(22) had chipped in with modest contributions.
For India Smitha Harikrishna took two wickets giving away only 10 runs, and Renu Margrate (1/18) Purnima (1/26) and
Deepa Kulkarni (1/35) also contributed their bit.
Anjum Chopra, who gave India the decisive edge, was declared woman-of-the-match.
Mail Cricket Editor
