India W beat Zimbabwe W by eight wickets at Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara, answering 131 all out with 133/2. Vaishnavi Sharma repeatedly broke Zimbabwe's resistance before India's batters completed the third-ODI chase with 198 balls remaining.
Vaishnavi cuts short Zimbabwe's recovery
Zimbabwe chose to bat, but three early wickets left Modester Mupachikwa carrying much of the scoring. Sayali Satghare had Loryn Phiri caught behind for a six-ball duck at 6/1, and Kranti Goud removed Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano for 4 at 12/2. Beloved Biza lasted 16 balls for 1 before being caught off Sharma at 25/3 in the tenth over.
Mupachikwa offered a more productive response, hitting seven fours in her 37 from 48 balls. She and Josephine Nkomo added 27 for the fourth wicket, giving Zimbabwe their first sustained partnership. That rebuilding effort ended at 52/4 in the 16th over when Yastika Bhatia stumped Mupachikwa off Sharma, removing the batter who had supplied most of the early resistance.
Nkomo then found support from Chiedza Dhururu in Zimbabwe's largest stand. Their fifth-wicket partnership added 43 and took the innings towards a more competitive position, with Dhururu contributing 20 from 39 balls, including four boundaries. But Sharma intervened again at 95/5 in the 28th over, having Dhururu caught by Jintimani Kalita before the pair could turn their recovery into a substantial platform.
Michelle Mavunga followed for 6, also caught off Sharma. Nkomo remained the main obstacle, making 35 from 67 balls with four fours, until Goud had her caught at 119/7 at the end of the 33rd over. Nyasha Gwanzura's 10 included two boundaries, but Sharma bowled her at the end of the next over to complete her five-wicket haul.
Sharma finished with 5/39 from ten overs, having removed both an established opener and the batters supporting Nkomo. Satghare bowled Olinda Chare for a duck and returned 2/11 from six overs, while Goud took 2/23. Nomvelo Sibanda's run-out ended the innings in 39.5 overs, leaving Zimbabwe without a late partnership to repair the damage.
Rawal and Verma make the early wicket count for little
Zimbabwe struck immediately in the reply. Sibanda dismissed Bhatia with the first ball, caught by Francisca Chipare, giving the visitors an opening before India had scored. Pratika Rawal and Harleen Deol denied them a quick follow-up, however, putting on 59 for the second wicket and moving the chase beyond that initial setback.
Deol contributed 19 from as many balls, with four fours, before Phiri had her caught by Mupachikwa at 59/2 in the ninth over. That was Zimbabwe's last breakthrough. Rawal stayed through the innings, finishing with 59 not out from 56 balls, including four fours and three sixes, and provided the continuity that the visitors had lacked.
Alongside her, Shafali Verma made 51 not out from 26 balls, striking six fours and three sixes. Her boundary-heavy contribution accelerated the finish, and the pair's unbroken 74-run stand carried India home in 17 overs. None of Zimbabwe's other four bowlers took a wicket after Sibanda and Phiri's successes.
The victory completed a 3–0 sweep in the Zimbabwe W tour of India W 2026.