India captain Harmanpreet Kaur insisted her side had committed no “crime” after sealing victory over England at Lord’s on Saturday with a run-out at the non-striker’s end.
England were eyeing a win in the third women’s One-Day International when India bowler Deepti Sharma ran out non-striker Charlie Dean, who was well out of her ground.
Dean’s 47, batting at No 9, had given England, who were 53/6, hope of chasing down a target of 170. Instead they were bowled out for 153 as India won by 16 runs to complete a 3-0 series sweep.
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It was only this week the International Cricket Council reiterated the dismissal was completely legitimate. And while some boos were heard following Dean’s dismissal, Harmanpreet was adamant Deepti had done nothing to overshadow either the victory or India pace great Jhulan Goswami’s last match before international retirement.
“To be honest, I thought you will ask about the first 10 wickets [9], before those weren’t easy to take,” Harmanpreet Kaur said with a smile.
“It’s part of the game I don’t think we have done something new. It’s ICC rules. You can take those chances. I think it shows your awareness, you’re aware what the batters are doing. I will back my player because I don’t think she has done something which isn’t in the ICC rules. It’s part of the game and at the end of the day, a win is a win and you just need to enjoy it,” said the India captain.
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England seamer Kate Cross added: “I think it’s a dismissal that’s always going to divide opinion. That’s all that’s ever going to get said about it: some people are going to like it, some people aren’t.
“Deepti chose to dismiss Charlie Dean that way. I’m more disappointed for Charlie Dean that she couldn’t get a fifty at Lord’s today because she looked set to do that.
“If we’re looking at the real positives, then maybe that’s the only way they could have got Deano out today.”
This was both teams’ first match at Lord’s since England beat India in the 2017 Women’s World Cup final.
Inputs from AFP
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