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Australian leg-spinner Alana King made history in the 2025 ICC Women’s World Cup by taking 7 wickets for just 18 runs against South Africa, who were bowled out for just 97 runs. King’s 7/18 is the best-ever bowling figures in Women’s World Cup history, breaking the long-standing record of 6/10 set by Jackie Lord of New Zealand against India in 1982. King’s extraordinary effort, the best by an Australian in Women’s ODIs, also helped bowl out South Africa for a mere 97 runs, marking their lowest total against Australia in ODIs. ICC Women’s World Cup 2025: Australia Vs South Africa – Live Score This was the first-ever 7-wicket haul in Women’s ODI World Cups and the sixth overall in Women’s ODI history. Sajjida Shah Jo Chamberlain Anisa Mohammed West Indies South Africa 2025 (World Cup) Ellyse Perry Shelley Nitschke King has excelled against South Africa, taking 15 wickets in 5 innings at an impressive average of 8.26 and a strike rate of 11.8. Additionally, she joined an elite group of Australian spinners — Lyn Fullston and Jess Jonassen — who each have two five-wicket hauls in ODIs. Managed To Extract Some Spin Alana King expressed her satisfaction with her performance. “It’s a good feeling (to take 7 wickets), no doubt. But I love trying to put Australia into a good position, and to bowl a quality side like South Africa out under 100 is something we’re pretty comfortable with,” King said at the mid-innings break. “We’ve played here a few games now. I did extract a bit of spin in the first game, and then even against England a couple of days ago. So we knew there was going to be a little bit of spin – it could hold a little, but when you play on a new pitch, you’ve got to assess conditions as soon as you can. I thought with the little bit of drizzle it might have slid on, but I still managed to extract some spin, so I’m pretty pleased with that,” she added. She credited her success to her coaches, mentors, and teammates, emphasising the strong team culture and self-belief within the Australian squad. “To be honest, I haven’t changed too much. I’ve got some great coaches, mentors, and teammates around me who help me keep getting better and evolving my game. I just want to keep doing my role for Australia. I love playing for this team, I love taking wickets for this team, and I just hope to keep putting us in good positions. I wouldn’t say a whole lot has changed in twelve months – if anything, I’ve just tried to become a lot more consistent with my stock ball and trust that. It’s been my go-to ball, and it’s given me the rewards,” she said. “I’m very happy to be a bowler in this team and put my feet up while the batters go to work. It’s a great team to be part of, we’ve got an amazing culture, a lot of self-belief within ourselves and in each other. It’s a pretty good change room to be part of,” King added. Choosing to bowl, Australia showcased a disciplined attack with King achieving impressive figures of 7-2-18-7. Megan Schutt (1/21), Kim Grath (1/21), and Ashleigh Gardner (1/19) claimed the remaining wickets. In a contest that will decide the league leader after the league stage, Proteas skipper Laura Wolvaardt (31), Sinalo Jafta (29), and Nadine de Klerk (14) managed to reach double figures. (With inputs from Agencies)
