India Women beat Zimbabwe by 121 runs in the second ODI in Vadodara on Sunday, and with that win they have taken the three-match series 2-0 with one game still to play.

Harmanpreet Kaur, the former captain, delivered the innings that set the tone. She scored 126 off 121 balls with 15 fours, and it was her eighth century in ODI cricket. Deepti Sharma matched her intent, hammering an unbeaten 106 off 86 balls with 15 fours of her own. Between them, the two batters turned a shaky start into a commanding total.

India were in trouble early. Captain Smriti Mandhana was dismissed for a duck off the second ball of the innings, and Shafali Verma, who had blasted a fifty in the previous match, fell for 8. India were 19/2 and the innings looked fragile.

Pratika Rawal, who hit a century in the first match of the series, and Harmanpreet then took control. They kept the boundaries flowing through the powerplay. Rawal reached her fifty off 57 balls, and Harmanpreet got there in 51. Rawal was dismissed in the 23rd over for 67, ending a third-wicket stand of 124, and Tejal Hasabnis followed soon after. That brought India’s innings back under pressure.

A dropped chance and a 153-run stand

Harmanpreet survived after Zimbabwe’s keeper dropped a simple catch. She made the most of it. Her cover drives and cut shots kept the scoreboard ticking, and without the burden of captaincy she played with freedom. Deepti joined her and the pair began racing each other to the boundary. Deepti reached her fifty off just 37 balls, playing in a T20 style.

In the 41st over, Harmanpreet pushed a double to reach her 101-ball century. Zimbabwe kept giving her chances. Two more catches were put down after she reached three figures. The fourth-wicket stand reached 153 before Harmanpreet holed out at long-off in the 47th over. Richa Ghosh managed only 7, but Deepti kept her foot on the accelerator and completed her own century with two fours in the final over. India finished on 328/6.

Harmanpreet’s innings also carried a record. With 8 ODI centuries, she moved past Mithali Raj (7) to become the second-highest century maker for India in the format. Mandhana (14) still sits at the top of that list.

Vaishnavi’s spell broke the chase

Chasing a huge target, Zimbabwe never looked like they could stay in the game. Opener Lorraine Phiri was out for 6, and Telugu spinner Sree Charani struck in the ninth over to start the collapse. Muchabwa kept fighting and Mugeri Tiripano added 69 for the second wicket, which unsettled India for a while.

The breakthrough came in the 23rd over, when Sayali Satghare produced a superb delivery to bowl Tiripano. From there, Vaishnavi Sharma took over. She removed Muchabwa in the 28th over and then cleaned up Bizwa (34), Mavunga (3) and Josephine Nkomo (20) in her successive overs. Her figures of 4/39 were the match-winning spell, and she was the reason the chase never regained momentum.

Deepti added to the rout at the end. She dismissed Nyasha (20) and Sibanda (0) in the 46th over, then removed Makusha for a duck in the next. Zimbabwe were bowled out for 207 in 48.5 overs. Deepti finished with 3 wickets, and the scorecard lists her figures as 3/35 in one report and 3/32 in another, so the exact tally should be checked against official records.

What comes next

Harmanpreet was named Player of the Match. India have already secured the series, but the final ODI on Wednesday gives them a chance to finish with a flourish. For a team that has now put 328 on the board and bowled a side out for 207, the momentum is firmly with them.

Here is the moment that captures the day: India’s batters built the platform, and their spinners finished the job. The series is theirs with a match to spare.

India won the series 2-0 with one game to spare, a dominant display from top to bottom.