Harmanpreet Kaur of India in action during T20 match between India (Women) and England (Women) at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on December 9, 2023
| Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI
With the weekend turnout exceeding everyone’s expectation, the security personnel had to close the gates of the Wankhede Stadium midway through the first innings. It appeared as if India had shut itself down even before the crowd poured in on Saturday evening.
A clinical display by England combined with lacklustre batting display meant India was bowled out for a paltry 80, its third lowest total in WT20Is. Despite a stutter towards the end, England overhauled the target with four wickets and 52 balls to spare and sealed the three-match series.
It turned out to be an evening to forget for Harmanpreet Kaur & Co. After asking India to take first strike, Heather Knight tactfully started the game with off-spinner Charlie Dean.
While Dean had perhaps been handed the ball to trouble left-hander Smriti Mandhana, she did the trick off the second ball by spinning one into Shafali Verma. The aggressive opener stayed on the backfoot and misread the line to be leg-before.
In the fourth over, with Smriti on strike, Dean was brought back from the Garware Pavilion end and the move worked. Smriti played on the backfoot and missed one that skidded into her to be trapped in front.
When Harmanpreet couldn’t negotiate Nat Sciver-Brunt’s in-swinger and Deepti Sharma nicked Lauren Bell to the keeper in the last two overs of the PowerPlay, India was in deep trouble at 29 for four.
Left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone then took a stunning return catch, lunging to her left to dismiss Richa Ghosh in the next over. Jemimah Rodrigues was forced to watch the grand collapse from the other end.
That she and Mandhana had the only two double-digit scores meant India folded up well before the allotted 20 overs.
Despite Renuka Thakur’s swing accounting for the England openers in the third over, a 42-run partnership for the third wicket between Alice Capsey and Sciver-Brunt shut the door on India.
Substitute Amanjot’s Kaur superb catch at covers to dismiss Capsey followed by Deepti’s two wickets off successive balls gave India some cheer towards the end before Eccestone completed the formalities with a mistimed four behind the wickets off Shreyanka Patil.
