South African skipper Laura Wolvaardt and teammate Sune Luus, fresh off a clinical whitewash of Ireland, go head-to-head with India’s explosive 21-year-old opener Shafali Verma, who backed up her November 2025 Player of the Month honours with another stellar showing against Sri Lanka. These nominees lit up bilateral series, blending centuries, blistering strike rates, and all-round impact to cap a thrilling month.
South Africa, led by skipper Laura Wolvaardt, hosted Ireland, led by skipper Gaby Lewis, for the first time in a bilateral series featuring a three-match T20I series followed by a three-match ODI series from 5th to 19th December 2025. The Proteas dominated with a whitewash in both formats, 2-0 in T20Is and 3-0 in ODIs, thanks to their dynamic duo of skipper Laura Wolvaardt and Sune Luus.
Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa)
Wolvaardt ended as the leading run-scorer in the ODI series with 255 runs at a strike rate of 111.84 and an average of 127.50 in 3 innings, including a couple of centuries. After a 31 in the first ODI, she produced back-to-back centuries, beginning with a fluent 124 off 111 balls, then remaining unbeaten on 100 in the third to seal the sweep.
In the T20Is, she topped the charts with 137 runs at a strike rate of 190.27 and an average of 137 in a couple of innings, including a century. Her explosive best came in the opening T20I: an unbeaten 115 off just 56 balls (15 fours, four sixes) at 205.35 strike rate, dismissed only once across the two matches.
Sune Luus (South Africa)
Sune Luus complemented her skipper as the second-highest run-scorer in the ODIs with 205 runs at an average of 102.50 and a strike rate of 98.55 in three innings, including a half-century and a century. She top-scored with an unbeaten 66 in the first ODI chase (plus a wicket) and followed with her second career ODI ton, 114 off 113 balls (another wicket), in the second.
In T20Is, Luus scored 118 runs at a strike rate of 157.33 and an average of 59, including a half-century, highlighted by 81 opening the batting in the first match and 37 in the second as South Africa posted 201. She also joint-led wicket-taking with 4 scalps at 11.25 average and 6.42 economy (a four-wicket haul in the opener), adding 4 ODI wickets at 4.97 economy alongside Chloe Tryon.
Shafali Verma (India)
India, led by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, hosted Sri Lanka, led by skipper Chamari Athapaththu, for a five-match T20I series from 21st to 30th December 2025, storming to a 5-0 whitewash. Shafali Verma, the young opening batter who claimed November’s award, starred as the leading run-scorer with 241 runs at a strike rate of 181.2 and an average of 80.33 in five innings, including 3 half-centuries, earning Player of the Series.
After a quiet opener, Verma ignited from the second T20I: an unbeaten 69 chasing 129. She smashed another unbeaten 79 in the third, wrapping the chase in under 14 overs. In the fourth, she unleashed 79 off 46 balls alongside Smriti Mandhana for India’s highest women’s T20I partnership and total of 221. Her consistent aggression set the tone for India’s dominance.
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