COLOMBO: India beat Nepal by seven wickets in Colombo on Sunday to win the first-ever T20 World Cup for women’s blinds.
India won the toss and elected to participate and restricted Nepal to 114-5.
They responded with 117-3 in just 12 overs to become unbeaten champions in an inaugural tournament that also included Australia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the United States.
Phula Saren of India was the top scorer with 44 off 27 deliveries. Nepal’s top scorer was Sarita Ghimire with 35 off 38 balls.
Sri Lanka and India co-hosted the tournament and the final was held at Sri Lanka’s oldest test venue, the P Saravanamuttu Stadium.
Blind cricket is played with a white plastic ball fitted with ball bearings that rattle as it rolls, allowing players to hear it.
The thrower must ask the striker if he is ready and then shout “play” as the ball comes out of the armpit with at least one bounce.
Each side has 11 players, like normal cricket, but at least four must be totally blind. Players should wear blindfolds to be fair.
The gardeners clap once to reveal their positions.
Other players may have partial vision, classified according to the distance at which they can see: two meters for B2 players, six for B3 players.
Each team can have up to eight B1, or totally blind, players. Any run scored by a B1 player is counted as two.
