India won the toss and opted to field in the first of the three T20Is in Chennai. The start was lop-sided, with South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt leading the charge at one end as Tazmin Brits was only able to get off the mark off the ninth ball she faced.
Wolvaardt was dismissed in the eighth over for 33 off 22 balls, bringing Marizanne Kapp to the crease, who set the stage ablaze with a quickfire 57 off 33 balls. In the meantime, Britz got her timing back and reached a fifty of her own.
Richa Ghosh gets hit on the face by a skier
Brits completed her fifty with a boundary on the first ball of the 16th over, bowled by Pooja Vastrakar. After a dot, she stepped out and went for a slog though the leg side to a slower length delivery, but only got a top edge that went high in the air.
Ghosh called for it and settled under the ball, but spilled it as it deflected off the edge of her gloves into her face. Along with that, she seemed to fall face first on the ground and required some time to get back up. The physio had to come rushing out and after some tests, it was decided that Ghosh wasn't fit enough to continue keeping.
Laura Wolvaardt created history in one-off Test against India in Chennai, becoming the first South African woman to score a century at the international level in all three formats of the game.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) July 1, 2024
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Uncapped Uma Chetry fills in for Ghosh
The 21-year-old Uma Chetry from Assam, who has been around the national setup for a year now but is yet to get a game, was called in to replace Ghosh in short notice.
Chetry was first picked for India last year for the Bangladesh T20Is and was part of both the ODI and Test squads against South Africa. She was also a part of the contingent that won gold at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou.
Later it was confirmed that S Sajana was named as Ghosh's concussion substitute. The 29-year-old right-handed batter has played five T20Is before, all coming against Bangladesh earlier this year.
The law for wicketkeeping substitutes was changed in 2017, allowing substitutes to keep wickets on approval from the umpire.
South Africa eventually ended up with 189-4, with Britz converting her slow start into a 56-ball 81.
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