Goa Under-19 Women Face Third Straight Defeat in Elite One-Day Tournament

Written by Tanisha Cardozo || Team Allycaral Sports Desk

Goa’s Under-19 women’s cricket team endured another challenging outing in the Under-19 Women’s Elite One-Day Cricket Tournament, suffering their third consecutive defeat in Group ‘A’ after a five-wicket loss to Puducherry on Wednesday. The match was played at the Railway Ground in Vadodara, where Goa showed resilience but were unable to convert promising performances into a victory.

Batting first after Puducherry elected to field, Goa were bowled out for 187 in 47.1 overs. Wicketkeeper Shilpa Sharma anchored the innings with a composed knock of 56, displaying maturity and control under pressure. She was well supported by Usma Khan, who contributed 45, and Preeti Gaonkar, who added a valuable 40 runs. Despite these efforts, Goa’s innings came to an end with 17 balls remaining, as Puducherry’s bowling attack maintained discipline. Haripriya emerged as the standout bowler for Puducherry, finishing with figures of four wickets for 41 runs.

In reply, Puducherry approached the chase with confidence and patience. Opener B.G. Jaishri played a commanding innings, remaining unbeaten on 111 to guide her team home. She found support from Varshini Devi and Nisha Sitharaman, who chipped in with 20 runs each, ensuring there were no major hiccups in the chase. Puducherry reached the target at 188 for five in 42.2 overs to seal the win.

For Goa, Athashree Shivarkar was the most impressive bowler, picking up three wickets for 40 runs in her full quota of 10 overs, while Vidhi Bhandare and Prachi Nikam claimed a wicket each. Despite the loss, Goa will take encouragement from individual performances as they look to regroup and prepare for their next fixture against Tamil Nadu on the 19th, hoping to turn their campaign around in the remaining matches.