New Delhi, 20th September, 2025 – The third and final ODI between India Women and Australia Women was under floodlights of the Arun Jaitley Stadium, and it was a high-stakes ending to the bilateral history. India, the hosts, is on the edge of the first ODI series victory in 20 years since 2007 – it is six years against the six-time world champions.
The inability of Australia to play to its depth and strength has turned this into a boiling pot of pressure, even though the blistering century by Smriti Mandhana in the second ODI has sparked the imaginations of glory. With the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 within 10 days, it is more than a decider; it is a dress rehearsal in the face of global redemption, being televised to millions of women and making the bodies of both women’s teams resonate with the beat of the rising tide of women’s cricket.
Series So Far
Indeed, the tour, which is part of the exhausting sub-continental tour of Australia, began on a whimper when the tour opened on September 14 at Mullanpur with India being India’s first. Guided by the tactical display of Alyssa Healy, Australia led 266/9 before limiting India to 232/9 to win the game by 34 runs, which resonated their long-running dominance.
However, the script changed drastically in the second ODI on September 17, when Mandhana, atop a 117 off 91 balls (the second fastest ODI century by an Indian woman) took India to 292 all out. A salvo of spin and seam destroyed the chase as it fell to 190 in 40.5 overs and gave India a historic 102-run rout, their largest ODI victory over the Aussies and the heaviest defeat of the format in Australia.
It is stratospheric now in the batting heaven of Delhi. India would not only win the series, but it would provide an indomitable pressure to the team of Harmanpreet Kaur with the World Cup coming to India. Their humbling will hurt Australia, which will be relying on its bench strength and experience to revive. The pitch used by Arun Jaitley in the thrillers with a high scoring record will guarantee a run-fest, and dew may favour the chase in the night match that begins at 1:30 PM IST.
Sequels: Since Aussie Edge to Indian Fire
First ODI
The first ODI established a recurrent theme: the top order of the Australian team was powered by 70 by Healy and 50 by Ellyse Perry as they laid a solid base. It was the difference as the 72 not out of Tahlia McGrath with India bowlers, headed by the 2/45 bowling of Deepti Sharma, could not stop the flow. In response, a gritty 68 by Jemimah Rodrigues managed to keep India alive, but a five-wicket haul by Healy, including Rodrigues and Kaur, crushed the spirit of the defeat.
Second ODI
The second game was an eye-opener. The attack of Mandhana managed with 14 fours and four sixes to tear apart the Australian attack. The bowlers chanced out like phoenixes, even though one of their flock, Deepti, had topped the middle-order wobble at 40 during a drop of 200/2 to 292 all out.
Debutant Kranti Goud destroyed the first ranking with 3/28, and Deepti (2/24) and Renuka Singh (1/32) suffocated the middle ranking. The 45 of Annabel Sutherland gave momentary opposition, but the batters of Australia, with 45 extras granted, disintegrated. This was the first time that India won a home ODI against Australia in 18 years, and this victory broke records as well as minds.
Significant Series Conclusions
- Australia 232/9 (McGrath 72; Healy 70) defeated India 266/9 (McGrath 72; Healy 5/23) by 34 runs, 1st ODI in Mullanpur. The Spin-twins of Australia, in Ashleigh Gardner and Alana King, suffocated the pursuits of India.
- 2nd ODI (New Chandigarh): India (292) with Mandhana (117) and Deepti (40) against Australia (190) with Sutherland (45) and Perry (44) and Goud (3/28) and Deepti (2/24) beat Australia by 102 runs. Mandhana breaks 206-day home drought versus Aussies.
- Head-to-Head: Australia are 32-17 ahead in ODIs, but India are yet to lose in the last two home matches (including the second game in this series).
Likely XIs and Tactical Chess: Who is on the Better Side?
There is quiet confidence in the camp of India; however, Captain Kaur is a hype-tamer. In a pre-match huddle, she said, “We have proven to be able to beat the best at home. Now, it’s about consistency.” As she sleeps with Shafali Verma after her endeavours in England, Mandhana starts with an up-and-coming star, Pratika Rawal, whose 569 runs in 2025 qualify her as a wildcard.
Primary to the middle are Rodrigues and Kaur, and the pivot of the series is Deepti, with 78 runs and five wickets – all-round bite. The trio of spin by Sharma, Sneh Rana and Radha Yadav might be on a rotary track with the support of the swings of Renuka and the rawness of Goud. There are still injury issues: Rodrigues has a niggle to battle, though Tejal Hasabnis is present as cover.
Australia, under Healy, looks at redemption. We were outmatched once; it’s time we retaliated, the skipper admitted. Their hitting power – Healy, Perry, McGrath, and Beth Mooney – is still deadlier, yet the defeat shows that they over-trust the first three.
The all-round performance of Sutherland (45 runs, one wicket in Game 2) and the finishing performance of McGrath (72 in opener) will play an important role. The bowling, with its late flurry of Darcie Brown (3/42) and Gardner (2/39), must get Mandhana early. Offspinner King and pacer Megan Schutt provide variety, but the slow over-rate fine of Game 2 (10% match fee) highlights the lack of discipline.
Key Players
| Player | Team | Role | Series Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smriti Mandhana | IND | Opener/Batter | 145rns 72.50 (1×100); SR 120+ |
| Alyssa Healy | AUS (Opener/ Captain/ WK) | All-Round | 75 runs (37.50); 5 wkts (4.60) |
| Deepti Sharma | IND | Nett and Playmaker | 58-4-21; Econ-3.80 |
| Ellyse Perry | AUS | All rounder | 94 runs, 47.00; 1 wkt |
| Kranti Goud | IND | Pacer | 3 wkts 9.33; Impact of debut |
| Tahlia McGrath | AUS | Batter/All-Rounder | 72; 2 wkt 20.00 |
Pitch and Conditions: Dew Factor in Play Delhi
Black-soil turf of Arun Jaitley Stadium normally produces batting scores of an average of 320+ in the first innings in recent ODIs. Bouncing will come early, and the 30th will be wearing spinning items. Dew, a nighttime terror in September, might turn bowling second a curse – captains might turn tradition and bowl first.
Weather gods are smiling: clear weather, 28 °C, humidity is 60 per cent, which is excellent to get all the quota. It is refereed by umpires Nitin Menon and Virender Sharma, and GS Lakshmi is the match referee, with the nod being to the increasing institutional gravity of women’s cricket.
Beyond the Boundary Stakes: World Cup Shadow and Legacy
It is not only cricket; it is a build-up to the curtain-raiser of the World Cup on September 30 in Bengaluru. Host India seeks a statement series win to free itself from the ghosts of recent bilateral blues. Success throws the onslaught of Kaur into the talk of favourites, justifying the infusion of youth such as Rawal and Goud. In the case of Australia, a salvage is a reminder of psychological influence, which causes them to be eternal masters with the 102 run bruise.
The series Off-field shows growth: The number of fans doubled since the England tour, and on streaming through Prime Video, Game 2 was watched by 2 million people. The ton trended worldwide, and Delhi school clinics were inspired by Mandhana. Jemimah Rodrigues (paralysed by viral fever at the time of the decider) is a symbol of the toll of the tour – her substitution, Hasabnis, a symbol of the depth both parties are so proud of.
Capital fans go crazy: Rub-a-dub hordes cry out Mandhana! Mandhana!” external gates, as the Aussies expats assemble with barbecues in Connaught Place. Memes are posted up in social scrolls – in Mandhana’s sixs or in Healy, the over-rate quips. With the anthems passing, there remains one fact: in the golden age of women’s cricket, where India-Australia is an Ashes chaser, the winner of today may be the redefiner of dynasties.
Final Word
Will Mandhana play another masterpiece? Can Healy’s veterans rally? The answer lies in the cauldron of history in Delhi as well as in the futures that are set afire. To date, the world is watching, gasping, as two titans battle for ODI immortality.