The Indian women's cricket team registered a remarkable victory, defeating England by 4 wickets in the first ODI played in Southampton. Deepti Sharma's excellent half-century and Sneh Rana's outstanding bowling were key factors in Team India's win in this match.
Sports News: The Indian women's cricket team has taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series by defeating England by 4 wickets in the first ODI match played in Southampton. With this fantastic win, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led team has avenged their loss in the previous Lord's Test. In this match, Deepti Sharma excelled with the bat for the Indian team, while Sneh Rana and Kranti Gaud troubled the English batters with their bowling.
Indian bowlers dominated the batsmen first
In this match, England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt won the toss and chose to bat first. However, England's start was very poor. Indian fast bowler Kranti Gaud troubled the English batsmen from the start and gave the team the initial two blows. She sent England's experienced batter Tammy Beaumont (5) and wicketkeeper Amy Jones (1) back to the pavilion cheaply. As a result, England's score was reduced to just 20 runs with the loss of two wickets.
After this, Emma Lamb (39 runs, 50 balls, 4 fours) and captain Nat Sciver-Brunt (41 runs, 52 balls, 5 fours) shared an important 71-run partnership for the third wicket and tried to steady the innings. But Sneh Rana dismissed both of them, giving India a big success. When England's score was 97/4 in 20.1 overs, the Indian team started to look dominant.
Sophia Dunkley and Richards' fightback innings
After this, Sophia Dunkley played the biggest innings for England. She scored a brilliant 83 runs in 92 balls, which included 9 fours. Along with her, Davidson Richards (53 runs, 73 balls, 2 fours) put up a century partnership and pulled England out of trouble. At the end, Sophie Ecclestone played a quick innings of 23 runs and the England team scored 258 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in the allotted 50 overs.
From India's side, Sneh Rana took 2 wickets for 31 runs in 10 overs, while Kranti Gaud also took 2 important wickets for 55 runs. Amanjot Kaur and Shri Charni got one success each.
India's steady start, then the struggle of the middle order
The Indian team, chasing a target of 259 runs, started brilliantly. Openers Smriti Mandhana and young Pratika Rawal put up a solid 48-run partnership, giving the team a b start. Smriti Mandhana scored 28 runs in 24 balls, which included 5 fours, while Pratika Rawal scored 36 runs in 51 balls and hit 3 fours.
After this, Harleen Deol (27 runs, 44 balls, 4 fours) partnered with Rawal for a 46-run partnership. However, India lost wickets quickly in the middle order. The team came under some pressure after the dismissals of Rawal, then Deol, and then captain Harmanpreet Kaur (17 runs). At this time, India's score was 124/4 in 27.1 overs.
Deepti Sharma and Jemimah Rodrigues' partnership secured the victory
In this difficult situation, Jemimah Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma took charge. Both together put up an important partnership of 87 runs and brought India very close to victory. Jemimah played an innings of 48 runs in 54 balls, which included 5 fours. After her dismissal, Richa Ghosh got out cheaply, but Deepti Sharma remained at one end.
Deepti Sharma scored an unbeaten 62 runs in 64 balls in her innings, which included 3 fours and 1 brilliant six. Along with Amanjot Kaur (20 runs, 14 balls, 3 fours), she took India to the target with 10 balls remaining.
Efforts of England's bowlers failed
For England, Charlie Dean was the most successful bowler, taking 2 wickets for 52 runs in 10 overs. Kate Cross, Sophie Ecclestone, and Lauren Filer took 1 wicket each. However, their efforts proved insufficient to stop India. With this victory, the Indian women's team has given a resounding response to the defeat in the Lord's Test.
After that Test defeat, the team made a b comeback and defeated England in the ODI format in their own home. Now, Team India leads the series 1-0 and will go into the next match with confidence.
