India Women won the toss and elected to field first in their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup warm-up match against England Women at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff. England Women posted a total of 171/6 in their 20 overs.
Their innings was anchored by substantial half-centuries from Amy Jones, who scored 64 off 45 balls before being bowled by Shafali Verma, and captain Natalie Sciver-Brunt, who contributed 57 off 45 balls until she was caught by Radha Yadav off Shreyanka Patil’s bowling. Danielle Gibson provided a late-innings surge, remaining unbeaten with a rapid 30 off just 12 balls. On the bowling side for India Women, Renuka Singh, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Shafali Verma, and N Sree Charani all claimed wickets, with Patil striking twice to dismiss Sciver-Brunt and Charlie Dean for 0.
England’s progression was marked by steady breakthroughs from the Indian bowling attack. The first wicket fell at 27 runs when Danni Wyatt-Hodge was dismissed in the 4th over, followed by a massive partnership that was finally broken at 97/2 with the departure of Amy Jones. India then picked up wickets at regular intervals, removing Alice Capsey at 103/3, Freya Kemp at 121/4, and striking twice late in the innings at 152 to dismiss Nat Sciver-Brunt and Charlie Dean.
Among the Indian bowlers, Shreyanka Patil was the standout performer, picking up 2 wickets for 29 runs in her 4 overs. Shafali Verma also proved effective, claiming 1 wicket for 18 runs across her 2 overs. While Renuka Singh and Radha Yadav both managed to pick up a wicket each, they were more expensive, conceding 44 runs and 38 runs respectively in their full 4-over spells. N Sree Charani chipped in with 1 wicket for 24 runs in 3 overs, while Kranti Gaud went wicketless but delivered the most economical spell of the innings, conceding just 17 runs in her 3 overs.
The chase got off to a bumpy start as opener Smriti Mandhana managed just 1 run off 6 balls before being caught by Tilly Corteen-Coleman off Linsey Smith. Her opening partner, Shafali Verma, provided a brief spark of aggression, smashing 13 runs off just 6 deliveries including a four and a six before being cleaned up by Issy Wong. Yastika Bhatia who scored 15 off 17 and captain Harmanpreet Kaur who scored 17 off 18 managed to get starts but failed to convert them, falling to Dani Gibson and Tilly Corteen-Coleman respectively.
The middle-order saw a steady contribution from Bharti Fulmali, who scored 18 off 17 balls, but the standout performance of the innings belonged to wicketkeeper-batsman Richa Ghosh. Ghosh kept India firmly in the hunt with a blistering 68 off just 36 balls, dismantling the English attack with 9 boundaries and 2 sixes. She was eventually stumped by Alice Capsey off the bowling of Linsey Smith.
Lower down the order, Radha Yadav chipped in with a quick 16 off 9 balls, hitting 3 fours, but India’s tail struggled to sustain the momentum. Shreyanka Patil 1 and Kalpana Goud 1 fell in quick succession to Charlie Dean, who also claimed a caught and bowled. Towards the end, N. Charani remained unbeaten on 6 off 3 balls, while Renuka Singh was dismissed for a duck on the penultimate ball of the match, caught by Charlie Dean off Linsey Smith. Supported by 10 extras, India’s valiant chase concluded at 166 all out with one ball left to spare.
England Women’s bowling unit delivered a mixed but ultimate match-winning performance to defend their total of 171/6 and bowl India Women out for 166. Linsey Smith was the most successful wicket-taker, picking up 3 wickets for 42 runs across her 3.5 overs. Charlie Dean and Tilly Corteen-Coleman provided exceptional control and precision in the middle phase, Dean claimed 2 wickets for just 16 runs in her 3 overs, while Corteen-Coleman mirrored that discipline by taking 2 wickets for 22 runs in her full quota of 4 overs.
Dani Gibson also chipped in effectively, taking 2 wickets for 17 runs during her 2 overs. On the more expensive side, Issy Wong picked up a single wicket but conceded 42 runs from her 4 overs. Meanwhile, Lauren Filer went wicketless, giving up 27 runs from her 3 overs. Together, the attack choked the chase right at the death, taking India’s final two wickets at 166 to wrap up a thrilling 5 run victory.
England’s victory was anchored by the exceptional discipline of Charlie Dean and Tilly Corteen Coleman, who choked India’s scoring rate in the middle overs, while their entire attack showed great composure to pick up wickets at crucial junctures and defend a tight total. Conversely, India’s chase faltered due to a severe lack of batting partnerships, with star opener Smriti Mandhana falling cheaply for 1 and others failing to convert their starts, which ultimately triggered a costly lower-order collapse that saw them bowled out just 5 runs short of the target.
Loves all things female cricket