#OTD in 2017 | Deepti Sharma and Punam Raut's 320 run stand
AUSW vs INDW | Day-night Test: Historic pink-ball Test ends in a draw
AUS W vs IND W | India ride on Smriti Mandhana's ton, but bat sluggishly to post big score
Watch | Fans divided as Punam Raut sparks 'spirit of the game' debate
India batter Punam Raut gathered praise from all around after she walked off despite the umpire signalling not out during the Day-night Test against Australia in Queenstown. During the second day of the pink-ball Test between the two sides, Raut went for a drive on a length delivery from Molineux and edged the ball. Wicket-keeper Healy took a clean catch and the home side went for a loud appeal for a caught behind but the umpire turned it down. The batter showed some spirit and went back to the pavilion. The visitors have been pretty dominant in the match after they put 276/5 before the game was halted due to bad weather in the second session on the second day. Opener Smriti Mandhana was the pick of the batters after she notched up a ton and became the first Indian batter to score a ton in women’s Tests in Australia. The Mithali Raj-led side began the proceedings on the second day of the match with the overnight score of 132/1. India were 217/3 when captain Mithali was joined by debutant Yastika Bhatia in the middle and the two players stitched a stand of 44 runs for the fourth wicket before Bhatia was sent back in the hut for 19. Mithali too followed her soon after she was run out for 30 by Sutherland. India had Deepti Sharma unbeaten at 12 while Taniya Bhatia at 0* when the match was stopped.
Pink-ball Test | Visitors steady at 276/5 before hailstorm plays spoilsport on Day 2
The second day of the pink-ball Test between India women’s and Australia women’s team was halted after there was an occurrence of hailstorm during the second session. The visitors were in a commanding position before the play was stopped as they had put 276/5 with Deepti Sharma (12*) and Taniya Bhatia (0*) still at the crease. India rode on some fascinating batting display from opener Smriti Mandhana who became the first Indian batter to score a ton in women’s Tests on Australian soil. The Mithali Raj-led side began the proceedings at 132/1 on Day 2 with Punam Raut (16*) and Mandhana (80*) at the crease. The left-handed opener added 47 more runs to his runs tally before getting out to Gardner while Raut was undone for 36 by Molineux. Later, captain Mithali and debutant Yastika Bhatia chipped in with a partnership of 44 runs before Bhatia departed for 19. Raj followed her soon after when the team score sheet read 274. “Really happy that I finally I got through this 80s period, I keep getting out in 80s and 90s and really pleased to get the hundred. Obviously disappointed as you want to get as much as you can after being set but overall really happy. I like the ball coming onto the bat and short ball is something I look forward to and I'm happy they bowled short and whichever were in my zone, I had to go for it,” Mandhana said after her knock.
ENG W vs IND W | 3rd ODI: With nothing to lose, India Women look to be brave and fearless
The Indian Women team did improve a bit in terms of their approach towards the ODI game in the second of the three-match series against England Women but still ended up losing the match, courtesy of some brilliant character shown by young Sophia Dunkley with the bat. She was the prime reason to rob away the Indian eves of a potential victory, mainly owed to them by their bowlers. While the bowling did improve a bit, it is the batting that is slacking and continued to do so in the second game as well. Necessary changes were made with Jemimah Rodriguez taking Punam Raut’s place at the top of the order and Sneh Rana coming in for Pooja Vatsrakar. However, what didn’t go well was another Indian collapse in the middle order after a relatively better top-order performance. Asking for too many changes could be a problem, but this Indian team could really afford to be a bit realistic in the sense that it has already lost the series. Punam Raut as a batter is way better and can be the real anchor. Whether or not she can drop anchor is a question that has not been answered yet. However, India can really do with her at number three instead of Jemimah because of two things mainly. First, she has an impressive record and was carrying form on this England tour. Secondly, Rodriguez, who was fitted into her place, really doesn’t solve the jigsaw puzzle in the sense that she is out of form and hence equally slow, if not more. The only way India seem to solve this problem is by either taking Raut to open with Shafali Verma and playing Smriti Mandhana at three to keep up the tempo or by involving young Indrani Roy as the wicket-keeper batter in the team and playing her at number three or opener and removing Raut altogether from the setup. Whether or not India tries that combination is a thing of deliberation. As far s the English unit is concerned, it is running like a well-oiled machine with somebody or the other raising its hand to deliver in the moment of crisis. Be it Tammy Beaumont and Nat Sciver in the first game or Dunkley and Katharine Brunt in the second. However, now since the series is won, England could really afford to give the reserve players a chance. England Women vs India Women: Match Details Match Number- 3rd ODI Date and Time: 03 July 2021, 03:00 pm IST, 09:30 am GMT, 10:30 am Local Venue: New Road, Worcester Broadcast and Live Stream in India: Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV Pitch Report As of now, only five Women ODIs have been played on this ground, the latest of which was played in 2019. In those five games, the team batting first have won four games, giving a fair bit of idea about the nature of the wicket. The home ground of Worcester county is known to9 slow down as the game progresses. The average first inning score of 203 also suggests that it is tough to score runs on this ground. The average second innings score is just 175. Weather Forecast and Toss The weather forecast of Worcester might not be pleasing news for cricket lovers as there are forecasts of thunderstorms and the chances of rain are between 35-51% from 10 am to 5 pm, mostly the entire duration of the game. The day would remain cloudy and chilly with temperatures ranging between 14-15 degrees celsius. In such conditions, any team winning the toss would choose to field first. Team News England Women The likes of Brunt and Anya Shrubsole could take time off to prepare for the upcoming T20I series and so can the batters like Beaumont and Sciver who have got a good hit so far. The team can go as far as resting Dunbkley as well if they feel like it. With all these changes, those who have been part of the team but haven’t got an opportunity can get a go as well. Freya Davies, Mady Villiers and Emily Arlott can take the places of Brunt, Shrubsole and Sophie Ecclestone while the likes of Fran Wilson can be tries in the middle order. Probable XI Lauren Winfield Hill, Fran Wilson, Heather Knight (c), Natalie Sciver, Amy Ellen Jones (wk), Sophia Dunkley, Emily Arlott, Sarah Glenn, Mady Villiers, Freya Davies, Kate Cross India Women The Indian team could really do with the change in the wicketkeeper. Not because of the wicket-keeping skills because Taniya Bhatia is probably the best behind the stumps. However, her batting is doing no favours to the team at all and Indrani, sitting in the room in probably the form of her life is going no good at all for her or the team. Thus she must be tried in this game where is losing doesn’t even matter. The rest of the team can remain unchanged if it wishes to. However, Mithali carried an injury in the last game and didn’t take the field. But with two days’ rest, most hopefully she would have recovered. And if not, Raut could take her place as easily as possible. Probable XI Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Indrani Roy(wk), Shikha Pandey, Jhulan Goswami, Poonam Yadav Dream XI and Fantasy XI team Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Mithali Raj (c), Heather Knight, Natalie Sciver, Amy Ellen Jones (wk), Sophia Dunkley (vc), Sneh Rana, Kate Cross, Jhulan Goswami, Poonam Yadav
Just a good knock away: Juhlan Goswami backs India Women middle order to deliver in 2nd ODI
India Women’s experienced fast bowler Jhulan Goswami believes that the Indian middle-order comprising of skipper Mithali Raj, and experienced batters Punam Raut and Harmanpreet Kaur, all of whom did not fire in the first game, would comeback in the second game. "They [Punam Raut, Mithali Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur] just need one good knock among them. Then definitely we'll be on a great platform. These things happen in cricket,” Goswami said in the pre-match press conference before the 2nd ODI between India Women and England Women on June 30 at the County Ground in Taunton. Praising the skipper who scored 74 in the first match, the 38-year-old Jhulan said, "Mithali has been very consistent. In the South Africa series also she batted well, this series also in the first ODI she scored runs.” “Harman needs one good knock and she'll be back. So we just need one good match from our middle order," she added. India Women lost the first game by eight wickets in just 35 overs, even after scoring more than 200 runs. Thus the Indian bowling came under scrutiny as well. Jhulan, who has more than 32 international wickets in her kitty too believes that the bowlers need to work on their skills. "Well honestly speaking we have to come back as a bowling group strongly. Whatever score will be there on the board we have to come back as a unit," Goswami said. The tall pacer also said that medium pacers in particular need to click for India. "It's just that our bowling unit, particularly medium pacers unit has not fired as it should have, so things look a bit wayward but I'm sure we all have a lot of talent and we are going to come back strongly," she said. India played with three pacers, namely Pooja Vastrakar, Shikha Pandey and Goswami herself.
ENG W vs IND W | 2nd ODI: With problems aplenty, Mithali Raj and Co. take the field to save series
The Indian Women team was shown a mirror and right into its face by England Women in the first ODI of the three-match series as they were beaten hands down and were proved inferior in all departments. This is the second series in running after the 1-4 drubbing at home by South Africa Women that last World Cup’s finalists have been humbled in all departments. With the 2022 World Cup only months away, the Indian team would not get any better opportunity than this England series to get a taste of conditions and also test their strengths going forward. The middle-order problem The biggest problem of the Indian Women’s team is that the middle order is not firing. Once Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma get out, which is also happening very often, there is no one to provide acceleration in the middle order or to even keep the scoreboard ticking. Harmanpreet Kaur has been quiet with the bat as well and that is an altogether different issue as well. To resolve this issue, what the Indian team could do is slot in Jemimah Rodriguez in between Mithali and Punam Raut, both of whom bat together and jam the scoreboard. With her drop and run technique, Rodriguez could still keep the scoreboard running. But slotting her in the middle would mean cutting on the bowling resources. So she can either replace Raut or the team could go with the batting abilities of Indrani Roy as the wicket-keeper batter and slot her in among Raut and Raj. Roy has opened at the domestic level and is a versatile batter. The fast bowler and finisher problem Indian skipper Mithali after the loss in the first game said that the Indian team needed fast bowlers to develop early and that there was a problem of a finisher. Now, the team has got only four fast bowlers in the squad. So it can either play Arundhati Reddy in the next game, the only untested fast bowler so far, or it can go towards its strength and try and olay Poonam Yadav and Sneh Rana in place of Ekta Bisht and Pooja Vastrakar respectively. Playing Rana and Yadav would solve two problems. Firstly the team can have three finishers if Roy bats at number three and Raut and Raj are pushed one place below each, making Kaur play at six, Deepti at seven and Rana at eight. Also, Rana has greater control over the ball and can turn it as well, so she would be a better spin option than Bisht. Yadav, with her ability to take the ball away from the batters, can pose threat to the English batting order. England Women vs India Women: Match Details Match Number-02 Date and Time: June 30, 2021, 06:30 pm IST, 01:00 pm GMT, 02:00 pm Local Venue: The Cooper Associates County Ground Taunton Broadcast and Live Stream: Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV Pitch Report The last time a Women’s game was played at the Taunton County Ground was in 2017 during the Women’s World Cup. This is ground that supports chasing as out of the 20 matches, 15 have won batting second. It is going to be a day-night match and hence the canes of swinging ball early on would be there as well. Along with it, the nighttime would pose its own challenges with dew and hence bowling first becomes an even better option. Weather Forecast and Toss With less than a five per cent chance of rain, it happens to be one of the rare occasions, where we might not encounter any interruptions during the game. The humidity will increase as the day progresses and ranges between 62-83% throughout the course of the game. With the previous record of the ground in mind and the weather conditions at the display, there would be no second thought about chasing after winning the toss in the minds of the skippers. Team News England Women There was not even a thing that England would like to change about from their previous game. The pacers were on the money, the spinners were great, fielding was perfect and batting was exceptional as well. The only thing that Heather Knight, the skipper would like to have is her form back. She failed on a chance in the last game. Probable XI Lauren Winfield Hill, Tammy Beaumont, Heather Knight (c), Natalie Sciver, Amy Ellen Jones (wk), Sophia Dunkley, Katherine Brunt, Sarah Glenn, Sophie Ecclestone, Anya Shrubsole, Kate Cross India Women As described India can really do with at least three changes. Sneh Rana and Poonam Yadav could take the places of Pooja Vatsrakar and Ekta Bisht respectively and Indrani Roy could be tried in place of Taniya Bhatia. Probable XI Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Indrani Roy (wk), Punam Raut, Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Shikha Pandey, Jhulan Goswami, Poonam Yadav Dream XI / Fantasy XI team Tammy Beaumont (c), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Mithali Raj (vc), Heather Knight, Indrani Roy (wk), Natalie Sciver, Sneh Rana, Anya Shrubsole, Sophie Ecclestone
ENG W vs IND W | India concede 181 dot balls in a timid display of conservative batting
The Indian Women team reached 201/ 8 in their 50 overs at County Ground, Bristol and that too thanks to some late hitting by skipper Mitahli Raj. However, if it comes to the dissection of the innings, the Indian skipper cannot get away just because she played some nice shots at the end. At one point in time, she and Punam Raut just choked the Indian batting scoring at even below three runs per over. They were the main reasons why Team India played 181 dot balls. It is 30 overs of dot balls, meaning that India scored its 201 runs in the remaining 119 deliveries only. The team started its innings in a brilliant manner with Shafali Verma playing in her usual way. But once she and her partner Smiriti Mandahna got out, Punam and Raj together played 94 balls to add only 56 runs. When Punam got out, it was followed by the wicket of Harmanpreet as well and suddenly India were 84-4 in the 28th over. At the same time, Mitlai was playing on 21 from 57 balls, striking at less than 40. If not for Deepti Sharma’s intent, India would have been looking at a much lower total. Not denying the fact that Mitlai did manage to crawl her way back and eventually ended her innings with a strike rate of above 65, still, the internet from the Indian team was lacking. On the other, England Women have been dominant ever since the start of the game. At the time of writing this, they were 114-2 in just 22 overs, scoring over five runs an over, even when the required run rate was just four runs per over.
ENG W vs IND W | One-off Test: Know India Women's possible playing XI
The Indian Women’s team led by Mithali Raj would be playing its first Test in eight years when it takes on England Women in a one-off Test in Bristol starting Wednesday, June 16. When India last played a Test match in England, it was in 2014 and on this tour, they have seven players who were part of the historic win seven years ago in Taunton. As things stand, among those seven players, most likely one would miss out. The selection of the playing XI is going to crucial keeping in mind the English condition. OneCricket tried coming out with the best possible India Women XI for the Test at Bristol. Openers: Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma The Indian Women would look to go with the tried tested Smriti Mandhan as the opening batter. But alongside her, sending Shafali Verma could turn out to be a great move considering that she is free-flowing in her approach and can dampen the English pace attack very early. In English conditions, sending Verma might be a tricky choice given that she has not even played an ODI let alone red-ball cricket. But that is the risk that India can take as they have the luxury of experienced Middle order and Smriti at the top as well who can do damage control if Verma falls cheaply. But if Verma does fore as is expected of her, it would give India Women the much-needed advantage. The 24-year-old Mandhana though has experience of both ODI and red-ball cricket as well. Although she hasn’t had much success in three Test innings but has 4000 international runs behind her to give her confidence in England. Middle Order: Punam Raut, Mithali Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma Once the foundation is set by the two openers, then the experienced middle-order consisting of skipper Mithali with her more than 10000 international runs which include 663 Test runs, Test centurion Punam Raut and explosive Harmanpreet Kaur can join the party. While the 38-year-old skipper has a double hundred to boast of and an average of more than 50, Kaur and Raut are also more than capable of enough of getting the game moving. In fact, Raut’s comeback to the Indian team was on the back of her performances in Days game at domestic level and then the Test hundred against South Africa Women in 2014. Harmanpreet is already pumped ahead of the game as she said in the pre-match press conference that she is looking to emulate the team’s victory in 2014. An explosive batter, she and Deepti also provide bowling options. Deepti is actually the fifth bowler in the squad having already picked up 119 international wickets in 109 international appearances. Yet to play a Test match, the 23-year-old Bengal player is already an Arjuna Awardee. Wicket Keeper: Indrani Roy This Bengal born Jharkhand player received her maiden call up to the national team on the back of a brilliant outing in the Senior Women’s National ODI Trophy in March- April this year. She is most likely to make her debut for India and that too Test cricket directly as her batting skills overpower those of other selected wicket-keepers, Tania Bhatia and Sushma Verma. Originally an opener for her domestic side, the 23-year-old would have to bat down the order in this lineup. She scored 456 runs at an unbelievable average of 76 with two centuries and a fifty. Bowlers: Shikha Pandey, Jhulan Goswami, Pooja Vastrakar, Poonam Yadav With the inclusion of Indrani, the Indian team would have seven pure batters and would thus have a chance to play an extra bowler. In that case and to utilise the English weather and pitch conditions properly, India would most likely go for three fast bowlers in the form of the experienced pair of Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey alongside Madhya Pradesh Express Pooja Vastrakar. Jhulan even at 48 can generate enough bounce with the red ball to trouble any batter in the women’s game and Shikha, along with her ability to move the ball, also has a history behind her when she alongside skipper Mithali chased down the English total to seal the win seven years ago. Though Vastrakar hasn’t had much success in the six ODIs she has played so far, not being able to pick even a single wicket. But in the 20 T20Is, the 21-year-old has had 16 scalps. She is quick, can bat and most importantly is accurate and that’s why gets into the playing XI ahead of Arundhati Reddy. As far as Poonam Yadav being picked over Radha Yadav and Ekta Bisht, both left-arm spinners is concerned, it is mainly because she provides the wrist spin option which would be any day beneficial against the English batters as compared to orthodox spin. A case for Jemimah Rodriguez Jemimah Rodriguez might get a game as well. But not in our XI. Although a gifted batter, who could roll her arm as well, the only place she fits in is opening with Smriti Mandhana. But her recent outings (55 runs in five innings) aren’t in her favour and thus getting a go-ahead of someone as dominating as Verma is a bit difficult. Note India would be targeting a record fourth successive win, which no other team has done so far in Women's Test cricket. Would they be able to do it? We will find out. The match would start at 03:30 pm IST and you can catch all the action along with ball by ball commentary and pre-match discussions from 03:00 pm itself on the OneCricket app and website.
ENG W vs IND W | One-off Test: Timeline of India Women’s Test cricket history
The Indian women’s cricket team will be playing their first-ever Test in seven years. In that same period, some of the men’s players must have played more than 50 games. But such is the system that even this basic need of playing Test cricket being fulfilled was touted as an achievement by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, when it's Secretary tweeted on March 8, Women’s Day, “On the occasion of #InternationalWomensDay, I’m pleased to announce that #TeamIndia @BCCIWomen will play a one-off Test match against @ECB_cricket later this year.” It’s not that only India Women are not playing Test cricket. Barring Australia and England Women, almost no team has played a Test match in recent years. For teams like New Zealand and West Indies, the last Test match dates way back to 2004. Sri Lanka Women have not played a Test in this century. It is understandable for these countries to be not playing Test cricket as the boards don’t have as many resources as India, Australia and England. But even the richer boards not giving their women’s teams even at least 1-2 Test matches every year is alarming. Having said that, it is great news that after this Test against England, which begins on June 16 at Bristol, the Indian eves would have another opportunity in the longer format when they play their first-ever pink ball Test Down Under in September this year. The one-off Test on their tour to Australia will be held at the iconic WACA Ground in Perth. “It's very important to have that idea of what Tests mean to the players, to the team, and the importance of former cricketers who've laid the path for so many years, keeping the sport alive for the current generations and to inspire the future generations,” these were the words of Mithali Raj, the India Women’s captain after the new entrants into the Indian team were given their Test jersey. Test cricket and its legacy is indeed important to inspire more women to join the game. Till now, in their 45 years of Test cricket history, Indian Women have played 37 Tests, winning five, losing six and drawing 26 of them. In their last four completed matches though, spread across 15 years, the Indian team have won three and lost none. On that note, let’s look at the timeline of the India Women’s Test cricket history. 1976-77: The beginning of the journey Indian Women’s team’s journey in Test cricket began with the West Indies Women tour of India in 1976-77. The tour included six Tests which to date remains the most number of Tests played in one series for both India and West Indies women. In that series, Indian Women won the fourth game by 5 wickets but lost the final Test by an innings and 24 runs. The rest of the four matches ended in a draw. In that series, Shanta Rangaswamy was the leading run-scorer with 381 runs at an average of 42.33 and with four fifties to her kitty. Among the wicket-takers, leading the chart was India’s Shubhangi Kulkarni with 23 wickets to her name. In the same season, the Indian Women toured New Zealand and Australia playing one Test in each of those nations. While they drew in the Kiwi nation, Australian women were too good to be overpowered. The Indian women lost that match by 147 runs. 1983-86: Effect of the Indian Men winning the ODI World Cup After playing eight Tests in one season, the Indian Women’s had to wait for six years to get their next batch of Test assignments. When Indian Men’s team won the 1983 ODI World Cup, it was after that the Indian Women’s team played against Australia in 1984. The matches were spread across four cities of Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Delhi and Lucknow, but all of them resulted in a draw. In that series, Sandhya Agarwal was the find for India. She hit two fifties and a hundred in the first three innings that she played in her career. In the series, she averaged 96 with 288 runs in her three innings. After Australia, New Zealand Women toured India in 1985 and the results were similar, albeit with one game less than the previous series. All the matches ended in a draw. Sandhya was once again the highest run-getter. She also equalled the world record for two consecutive hundreds in Test cricket which stands to date. After scoring a hundred in her last game against Australia, she scored a hundred in the first match against New Zealand. After the New Zealand series, it was India’s turn to tour and they went on their first-ever tour of England for Test matches. Through matches in Worcester, Blackpool and Weatherby in 1986, India Women showed their strength as they saved every game and drew the three-match series. Snadhya Agarwal was once again the talk of the town with her immensely supreme batting skills. She scored 359 runs in six innings at an average of more than 71 with 190 being her best. 1990-99: The 90s that changed perception After the series against England in 1986, the Indian Women’s team had to once again wait for five years before they toured Australia for a three-match Test series in 1991. They lost two of the games in Melbourne and Adelaide, having drawn the first game in Sydney. It was a forgettable series of sorts as none of the Indian batter or bowlers could make a mark. After the rather unsuccessful series in Australia in 1991, the next time that India Women played Tests was in 1995. On their tour to New Zealand, they played and drew one game before coming back home to play an iconic three-match series against England. It was in that series against England that the famous two-run defeat against England was registered in the Jamshedpur Test. Winning the toss, England Women decided to bat first at the Keenan Stadium. Courtesy of some brilliant bowling by Sangita Dabir, they were bundled out for 196 in the first innings. India Women were brilliant with the bat too as they scored 263 runs, taking a lead of 67. Dabir was once again the beacon of light with her 60 runs. In the third innings, the England Women fought back scoring 194 runs and setting a target of 128 for India. It was in the fourth innings that the match took a 360-degree turn. While the English last wicket built a 23-run partnership, India lost their last two wickets within one run, including that of a set Dabir. Only four runs were required to win when Dabir got out. Dabir was the find of this series with 10 wickets and 194 runs at an average of 48. A win against England Women in Test cricket could have been achieved as early as 1995, but it took 11 years to be finally achieved. Post that series it took four more years before the India Women team played a Test. It was in 1999 in England. That game ended in a draw with India needing to chase 252 and ending up with 223-8. 2002-06: When Test cricket was still trading commodity Gone were the times of three or more Test matches series. Now it was two matches or just one. But still, they were played once a year. In 2002, England toured India and Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami, currently, the two pillars of the Indian Women’s cricket, made their Test debuts. Only two innings were possible in that game and neither Jhulan nor Mithali had a moment to remember. While Jhulan went wicketless in her 19 overs, Mithali was bowled for a duck. In that very year, The India Women toured South Africa and registered their first-ever Test series win. It was in the one-off Test at Paarl. While Mithali scored a fifty in the first innings and was there to see India home in the second, Jhuland too picked up four wickets in the two innings combined. The year 2002 was good in the sense that India toured England in that very same year, making it three series in one year for the first time ever since 1976-77. The series was drawn as the second match was washed out after the first one ended in a draw. In 2003, India played only a single Test against touring New Zealand that ended in a draw. In 2005, England toured Sri Lanka and India and played a test in Delhi and that too ended in a draw. In 2006, India made two tours, one to Australia and one to England. While the Australia tour was forgettable with the team getting bundled out twice under 250, it was the tour of England that created all the buzz. India Women registered a historic victory against the hosts, their first against England and only the third overall. Mithali’s side defeated the Charlotte Edwards led-team by five wickets in Taunton. Jhulan took two five wickets hauls in both the innings, registering her best match figures of 10-78. Mithali also scored a fifty in that game. In the second Test, India managed to draw the game with ending the fourth day’s play at 187-8 chasing 271 for victory. Thus winning their first-ever series against a high ranked team. From then till now: The never-ending lull The historic win in England must have pushed Test cricket right? Well, it did exactly the opposite to that. Not only did India not play even a single game for the next eight years. But even when they did play two Tests in 2014 and won both of them, including one against England in England, the Indian Women had to wait another eight years to find their next Test assignment. In the 2014 series against England, eight India Women players including the likes of Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, Punam Raut, Ekta Bisht and Shikha Pandey, who are travelling for the 2021 Test in Bristol, made their Test debuts. In fact, Shikha batted 34.3 overs alongside skipper Mithali in a 68-run partnership. The fast bowling all-rounder played 106 of the 207 balls in the partnership. At the end of 2014, South Africa toured India and in that game in Guwahati, three more Indian players made their debuts, two of whom, leggie Poonam Yadav and wicket-keeper batter Sushma Verma are touring with the team currently as well. India beat the Proteas Women in that game by an innings and 34 runs. Thirush Kamini and Punam Raut scored centuries in that game, Kamini missing out on a double ton by just eight runs. Come June 16 and India would play their 37th Test at Bristol with more new faces like Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodriguez, Shafali Verma, Indrani Roy and Pooja Vatsrakar most probably making their debuts. How would things fold out is yet to be seen. But you stay with OneCricket as we would bring the ball by ball update of that game to you on your cell phones, tablets and laptop screens from June 16 onwards.
Senior Women’s One Day Trophy 2021: Railways reign supreme to lift record 12th title
Railways, the most dominant force in women’s cricket in India, once again showcased their prowess winning the 2021 edition of the Senior Women’s One Day Trophy. They defeated Jharkhand Women, a first-time finalist in the tournament’s 14-year-old history by seven wickets. Sneh Rana shone with the ball for the Mithali Raj led side at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot. Punam Raut and Sabbhineni Meghana were the heroes with the bat. Raj, the skipper of the side neither bowled nor batted in the entire game. Chasing a modest target of 168 to win, Railways lost wicketkeeper batswoman Nuzhat Parween pretty early in the form of a runout. But after that Raut and Meghna added 107 runs for the third wicket to break the back of the Jharkhand defence. Raut did get out, but not before completing her consecutive half-century (59) in the tournament. Meghna too was stumped off the bowling of Ravinder Devyani off 53, but it was too late for the women from the land of mines to stage a dynamic comeback. Sneh and Mona Meshram completed the proceedings to take Railway home by seven wickets in just 37 overs. Earlier in the day, Jharkhand skipper Niharika mani won the toss and decided to bat first. Apart from Mani herself (39*), only Indrani Roy (49) and Durga Murmu (31) showed any sort of resistance against the dominating Railways bowling. The team eventually got all out on the very last ball of the innings for 167.
Jhulan Goswami, Smriti Mandhana lead India’s comeback in ODI series vs South Africa
It was Jhulan Goswami show on display in batting while Smiriti Mandhana stole the show in batting to thrash South Africa in the second game of the five-match series. Jhulan was at her vintage best as she broke two partnerships in her two spells, eventually claiming four wickets for 42 runs in her 10 overs. Mandhana, 24, was at her very best as India started the chase of a modest 158. She and Jemimah Rodriguez got India to a brisk start making 22 in the first four overs. Jemimah though got out trying to pull a boat down the leg and chopping it on to her stumps, Mandhana continued on her way. She was joined by Punam Raut and the two carried on till India eventually won the game and levelled the series. Mandhana, on her way to 80 off 64 balls also became the most accomplished female opening batsman of India, going past Jaya Sharma’s tally of 2039. While Jaya had scored those runs in 72 games, Mandhana achieved the feat in only 52 games. She now has 2119 runs in 52 games at an astonishing average of 44.15. Raut also brought up her 14th fifty scoring an unbeaten 62 as India chase down 157 in just 28.4 overs. Earlier in the morning, Mithali Raj, the India skipper won the toss and decided to field first. Manasi Joshi, making a comeback into the Indian team gave early blows to South African eves along with Jhulan. However, after the fall of those two wickets, skipper Sune Luus and Lara Goodall added 60 runs trying to steady the ship. But Jhulan came back to break the partnership and once it was broken, the floodgates opened and Indian bowlers kept on striking one after the other. Goodall was the highest scorer for women in green and yellow, getting removed for 49 by Harmanpreet Kaur. Apart from Jhulan’s four-for, Rajeshwari Gayakwad took three wickets while Joshi picked up two. With this win at the Atal Bihari Bajpayee stadium, Indian eves have now levelled the five-match series and the two teams would now faceoff in the third game on 12th March at the same venue.