A dominant Australia continued to maintain their stranglehold over India in the three match Women’s ODI Series with a fluent 83 run win at W.A.C.A. Ground, Perth on Wednesday. The host, after setting a challenging target of 299 runs, bundled out the visitors for 215 in 45.1 overs, despite Smriti Mandhana's spectacular century, her fourth ODI hundred in 2024.

Having convincing won the previous two encounters that were played at the Allan Border Field, Brisbane by five wickets and 122 runs respectively with their all-round depth in all departments of the game, the host further cemented their place at the top of the 2022-25 ICC Women's Championship table with additional six points taking their overall tally to 34 from 21 matches. They will now face New Zealand in their final three games of the ongoing cycle and look on course to securing their third straight crown.

India remained third in the standings behind England with 25 points from 18 games. With only six ODIs left to play - three each against West Indies and Ireland. For them to claim their maiden ICC Women’s Championship title, the Harmanpreet Kaur led side not only need to win most of their remaining matches but also hope for favourable results from other fixtures.

As for the third ODI,  Australia did well to recover from the loss of four quick wickets in space of six overs for 20 runs immediately after the first powerplay, following a solid 58-run opening partnership between openers Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll. Indian rookie pacer Arundhati Reddy (4/26) accounted for all of the top order batters including previous match centurions Voll and legendary all-rounder Ellyse Perry. However a superb 110 from all-rounder Annabel Sutherland, her second set the tone for the match and was added by valuable contributions from Ashleigh Gardner (50) and skipper Tahlia McGrath (56 not out), ensured Australia posted a competitive 298 for 6 in their 50 overs.

In reply, India’s top-order showed promise, with vice-captain Smriti Mandhana scoring a well-made 105 off 109 balls with 14 fours and a six despite losing young Richa Ghosh cheaply in the fifth over. India struggled to maintain the tempo as they lost key wickets including that of their skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (12) cheaply. Australia’s bowlers, particularly Ashleigh Gardner (5/30) showcased her all-round abilities by providing wickets at crucial intervals. Despite spirited efforts from players like Mandhana and Harleen Deol (39), India was unable to chase down the target, and finished their innings at 215 all out.

The 3-0 series loss of the visitors who will be also hosting the ICC Women's ODI World Cup next year, showcased its inability to rise to the occasion against the most successful team and defending champion. The Indian side will need to produce a herculean effort if they harbour any hopes of winning their maiden ODI World Cup title against the likes of strong favourites Australia which has won the title seven times and failed to make the final on only three occasions.

Post the match, Annabel Sutherland,  Player of the Match & Player of the Series said, "I thought the Indian girls, especially the quick bowlers, bowled really well and picked up key wickets. Gardner and I just tried to take it deep and then capitalize when the opportunity came.  Climbing up the order is never easy, but the girls have done it beautifully throughout the series. We've had some great discussions about our approach, and it’s really satisfying to see our plans come together and get the win. For me, it's about managing my body, especially with all the travel. It’s important to put in the work during the pre-season and stay fit throughout the matches."

A dejected Harmanpreet Kaur, Indian Captain on the other hand said, “I think we bowled well, especially Arundhati Reddy, who was exceptional with her 10-over spell. Her performance kept us in the game. Credit goes to Australia for their impressive performances with both bat and ball throughout the series. We’ll take a lot from these matches and analyze everything when we go back home—looking at where we went wrong and how we can improve. There were definitely positives, with Smriti’s  (ninth century overall) performance tonight being a standout. We did well in patches, but we weren’t consistent enough. We’ll have discussions on how to address this and focus on improving moving forward. Next, we’re heading to India and will be facing the West Indies in a home series later this month (3T20Is – Navi Mumbai and 3 ODI- Vadodara)."

A satisfied Tahlia McGrath, Australia Captain whose team won their seventh straight series expressed her happiness with the performance of her teammates. “Ashleigh Gardner and Belsy (Annabel) were outstanding with both bat and ball. They really helped shift the momentum in our favour. What’s been most pleasing throughout this series is that someone has stepped up in different situations. We’ve backed each other, and I’m really excited to secure the win. For me, the batting was the real highlight. The way we played in game two, with our top four getting runs on the board, was fantastic. Belsy was also brilliant with the ball. We need to focus on our bowling execution, but overall, it's been great to finish with a win."

Stats and Milestones:

Maximum Whitewashes: Australia’s 3-0 clean sweep against India is their 33 Whitewash in women's ODI bilateral series, involving three or more matches, the highest by any team. England with 11 is the next best

Ninth ODI Century: Indian vice-captain Smriti Mandhana who scored her ninth ODI century in the third and final ODI against India came in 91 innings  making her the third-fastest to reach the mark. She also has the most hundreds for India in this format, and is only behind Australian Meg Lanning (15), New Zealand’s Suzie Bates (13) and England’s Tammy Beaumont (10) in the overall list.

Record ODI centuries in a calendar year:  Smriti Mandhana registered her fourth ODI centuries in 2024 - the most in women's ODIs in a calendar year. Belinda Clark (1997), Meg Lanning (2016), Amy Satterthwaite (2016), Sophie Devine (2018), Sidra Amin (2022), Nat Sciver-Brunt (2023) and Laura Wolvaardt (2024) have scored three hundreds in a calendar year.

Youngest to complete 8000 International runs: Indian opener Smriti Mandhana who scored 105 against Australia on Wednesday, also became the youngest (28y, 146d) to achieve this land mark.

Third best performance by a visiting bowler: Indian pacer Arundhati Reddy impressive match figures of 10-2-26-4 against Australia in the final ODI is the third-best by a visiting bowler in Australia. The top two are by New Zealand former medium pacer Katrina Keenan (4/ 11) in 1996 and South Africa’s Helen Davies (4/23) in 1999.

Batting Depth: Annabel Sutherland (110) who became the first Australian batter to score a century in women's ODIs from No. 5 or lower, along with fellow all-rounders Ashleigh Gardner (50) and Tahlia McGrath (56) showcased the batting depth of her team, Incidentally it’s the first such instance of three batters scoring over fifty.

Brief Scores (Women’s ODI Series- Latest one first):

3^rd ODI: Australia - 298/6 in 50 Overs (Annabel Sutherland 110, Tahlia McGrath 56*, Ashleigh Gardner 50;  Arundhati Reddy 4/26, Deepti Sharma 1/77) beat India  - 215 all out in 45.1 Overs (Smriti Mandhana 105, Harleen Deol 39, Jemimah Rodrigues 16; Ashleigh Gardner 5/30, Megan Schutt 2/26, Alana King 2/27). Player of the Match:  Annabel Sutherland (Australia)

2^nd ODI: Australia - 371/8 in 50 overs (Ellyse Perry 105, Georgia Voll 101, Phoebe Litchfield 60, Beth Mooney 56; Saima Thakor 3/62, Minnu Mani 2/71) beat India - 249 all out in 44.5 overs (Richa Ghosh 54, Minnu Mani 46*, Jemimah Rodrigues 43; Annabel Sutherland 4/39) by 122 runs. Player of the Match:  Ellyse Perry (Australia)

1^st ODI: India - 100 in 34.2 overs (Jemimah Rodrigues 23; Megan Schutt 5/19) lost to Australia - 102/5 in 16.2 overs (Georgia Voll 46*, Phoebe Litchfield 35; Renuka Thakur 3/45, Priya Mishra 2/11) by 5 wickets. Player of the Match:  Megan Schutt (Australia)

Photo Cover: Smriti Mandhana scored her ninth ODI century and fourth this calendar year (Photos courtesy BCCI)

Photo Above: Indian pacer Arundhati Reddy exults after accounting for four top order Australian batters in the final ODI