This is the subcontinent’s second consecutive ICC Under-19 T20 World Cup title.

South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first but were soon in trouble as they slipped to 20-3 in the powerplay.  The Indian bowlers Aayushi Shukla, Gongadi Trisha, Vaishnavi Sharma and Parunika Sisodia were relentless, taking nine wickets between them and restricting South Africa to 82 in their 20 overs.  Mieke van Voorst was South Africa’s highest scorer with 23 off 18 balls, with only Jemma Botha (16 off 14), Karabo Meso (10 off 26) and Fay Cowling (15 off 20) managing to get double figures.

India only needed 11.2 overs to get to the South African’s total, with Trish starring with the bat as well.  Trisha’s 44 off 33 and Sanika Chalke’s 26 off 22 were enough to seal the deal for India. Trisha finished as the highest-run scorer of the tournament with 309 runs and was named the Player of the Match and the Player of the Tournament.

 SA captain Kayla Reyneke took the only wicket – G Kamalini, who scored 8 off 13 balls.

After the match, India’s captain Niki Prasad told the media that her team focused on staying calm and doing the job.

"We wanted to go out there and show what we can do. Thanks to the BCCI for giving us the best facilities. I'm feeling happy that I'm right here standing, making sure India stays on top. It's a special moment. Start of the tournament I mentioned we're here to dominate, to ensure India is here to stay on top. The South Africans have been playing really well, we've been playing against them for a long time, the character they've shown is nice to see, really nice to compete against them," she said.

OFM Sport/Ilse Smalberger