The Harmanpreet Kaur-led India gear themselves up for the final dress rehearsal ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 in England and Wales from 12th June to 5th July 2026. Led by the stand-in skipper Charlie Dean, the home side will be involved in a three-match T20I series, which also includes a one-off historic Test at Lord’s after the conclusion of the 10th edition of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
Jemimah Rodrigues and Yastika Bhatia scored fifties as India Women beat England to take a 1-0 lead in the T20I series in their opening match.
The T20I series opens at County Ground, Chelmsford on 28th May 2026. Both sides had one debutant each, Tilly Corteen-Coleman for the home side, and the impressive pace bowling sensation Nandni Sharma for the visitors. Regular skipper Harmanpreet Kaur was rested, and Smriti Mandhana stepped in as a stand-in skipper for India for the first T20I.
Yastika Bhatia and Jemimah Rodrigues lead the charge as India posts 188
The home side got off to a dream start, removing both the dangerous openers Shafali Verma and stand-in skipper Smriti Mandhana in the first over after skipper Charlie Dean won the toss and opted to bowl first. Jemimah Rodrigues joined Yastika Bhatia at the crease, and the pair immediately delivered the counterpunch by taking down Issy Wong for 27 runs in the 2nd over of the innings to bring the momentum into the innings for the visitors.
The duo stitched the record 3rd wicket stand against England in English conditions in the T20I format, worth 126 runs to not only lead the recovery, but also reverse the pressure on the home side. Skipper Charlie Dean took matters into her own hands by dismissing both the set batters, wicket-keeper batter Yastika Bhatia (54 off 40 balls), returning to the side in style with a statement half-century. Jemimah Rodrigues (69 off 40 balls) also scored an enterprising half-century but made her way back to the pavilion in the same 14th over of the innings.
The experienced all-rounders Deepti Sharma (22 off 13 balls) and Arundhati Reddy (9* off 8 balls) provided the finishing touches with a quick-fire 39-run stand for the 7th wicket, guiding India to 188/7 in their quota of 20 overs, their 2nd highest in the format against England away from home. Lauren Bell (4-0-34-3) and the debutant Tilly Corteen-Coleman (3-0-19-1), and skipper Charlie Dean (4-0-26-1) were the stand-out performers with the ball for England.
Clinical India takes T20I series lead with a comprehensive win
Chasing a challenging total of 189, the English openers Sophia Dunkley and Alice Capsey got their side off to a steady start but couldn’t take the innings deeper as Kranti Gaud dismissed both the openers inside the powerplay. One of the most experienced duos is Heather Knight and wicket-keeper batter Amy Jones, who led the recovery with a promising 64-run stand, but it came at a cost as the partnership stretched over 9 overs out of the contest, putting immense pressure on the rest of the batters.
Shree Charani broke the stand, by sending the former England skipper Heather Knight (21 off 24 balls) back to the pavilion in the 14th over of the innings. The tempo of the partnership skyrocketed the required rate almost beyond reach on a challenging surface, leaving the home side chasing the game. The impetus didn’t arrive for England in the chase courtesy of a disciplined performance from the Indian bowlers, squeezing the life out of the contest.
England were eventually restricted to 150/8 in their quota of 20 overs, falling 38 runs short of the target. Debutant Nandni Sharma (4-0-34-3) was sensational on her international debut, alongside Kranti Gaud (4-0-24-2) and Shree Charani (4-0-25-1). Arundhati Reddy (4-0-23-0), despite being wicket-less, was impressive in her spell for India. Wicket-keeper batter Amy Jones (67 off 48 balls) and Sophie Ecclestone (13 off 7 balls) were impressive with the bat for England.
Jemimah Rodrigues was awarded the Player of the Match courtesy of her counter-attacking innings (69 off 40 balls) under pressure, playing a crucial role alongside Yastia Bhatia in a match-defining partnership, as India took a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series.
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