12.10 am: So that’s that then for Mithali Raj and Co on this tour. From here on it will be Harmanpreet Kaur and co as the T20Is remain. India beat England by four wickets in rain-curtailed third and final ODI for first win of tour. Overall on the points tally, it is 6-4 in favour of England and finely poised. Here’s hoping for a cracking three-match series ahead.
Mithali Raj: It was important for her to stay till the end and guide the batters around her, adds that she has always enjoyed chasing more because it gives a target to work with. “I am happy,” is all she says about breaking the record for international runs and quietly slips away.
Player of the series: Sophie Ecclestone.
Player of the match: Mithali Raj
India win by 4 wickets: The winning shot could not have been any more fitting. Guided past the fielders inside the circle, just as she guided India past the finish line. And just calmly acknowledging the winning moments. Mind you, not a dead rubber, India are still alive in the multi-format point system. It’s 6-4 in favour of England now.
75 off 86 balls
8 fours
Strike Rate 87.20
46.3: MITHALI RAJ WINS IT! A delightful shot square of the wicket, it’s a four. And she takes India past the finish line. India win by 4 wickets. Record-breaking Mithali Raj takes her side home as well.
46.2: Goswami gets off strike with a single. Mithali Raj back to take strike. 4 off 4 needed.
46.1: Brunt with the last over. Mithali Raj cuts the ball, it’s just a single though. 5 off 5.
India need 6 off 6 balls. Mithali will be on strike. Jhulan Goswami the non-striker. The two veterans of Indian cricket in the middle.
Over 45.6: WICKET! Sophie Ecclestone does strike in the penultimate over. Sneh Rana is out for a fantastic 24 off 22 balls. Another twist on the cards?
Over 45.4: SIX.... No, it’s a FOUR! Kate Cross tries to take a running catch at long on but Sneh Rana’s lofted shot evades her. Big pressure releasing shot from her. India close.
Sophie Ecclestone truly is special. A team needs 14 off 12 and Knight turning to her for the penultimate over is not a surprise. Consistently trusted to bowl the biggest overs in a match.
India 206/5 after 45 overs: Fifth ball of the over, how did Mithali keep that off her pads! Looked like a plumb LBW for a moment. But she is seeing the ball enough in this over. Not great running between the wickets though, there was a couple of twos in that over missed.
Brunt comes on. Critical over.
Mithali Raj’s strike rate, in case you are wondering, is above 80 now.
India 200/5 after 44 overs: Is that the over that won it for India? A terrific lofted cover drive for four by Mithali Raj and then a lovely shot down the ground by Sneh Rana. 11 runs from that Cross over. Oh, make that 12! Overthrows. Indiscipline from England.
India 188/5 after 43 overs: Ecclestone, superb as ever. Not an inch given away. But India do well to actually take 6 runs from that. They can still keep this in their hands.
India 182/5 after 42 overs: A four to end that over! almost scooped to the fielder at short fine, but Rana gets away with that. Sciver’s over goes for 8. Need 39 from 30 balls.
HALF CENTURY! Third fifty-plus score for Mithali Raj in this three-match series. This has come off 68 balls and she gets there with a four. She holds the key in this run-chase. A good over for India too, that one from Cross. India 174/5 after 41 overs.
India 166/5 after 40 overs: NRR is nearly 8 RPO.
WICKET! Deepti Sharma was looking in good touch and she has the ability to find the boundaries but Nat Sciver has ended her stay in the middle. Caught and bowled. Looked like a cutter, gripped and stood up. Deepti wasn’t ready for that at all. Lobbed back. India 164/5 after 39.2 overs.
India 162/4 after 39 overs: 7-0-26-1 from Sarah Glenn hasn’t helped India’s cause in this run-chase when they decided to play it safe against Ecclestone. They had to target someone else and haven’t quite been able to do that. Deepti hits a four in Cross’ over to relieve some pressure. 59 from 48 balls.
India 150/4 after 37 overs: a good over for India as Brunt starts with one down the leg side that Raj puts away for four. Should have been more than 9 runs though as Deepti misses out on a juicy full toss of the last ball.
Since Jan 2018, Harmanpreet Kaur’s numbers in ODIs:
23 innings.
543 runs (795 balls)
55* highest.
Average 28.57
Strike rate 68.30
Fifties 2
India 141/4 after 36 overs: an over with six singles from Sarah Glenn. Not bad per se for India.
India 135/4 after 35 overs: Need 86 from 12 overs, more than 7 RPO. Brunt is back and concedes just 3.
Over 33.2: WICKET! Harmanpreet Kaur’s struggles continue. She is out LBW while trying to play the reverse. Out for 16 (38b). Could she have reviewed? Indeed, impact outside off stump. Knight with the wicket. As if the shot wasn’t odd enough, as if the form is not worrying enough, as if the score of 16 (38) is dodgy enough, no review asked for and India find themselves in a deeper hole.
India 130/3 after 33 overs: Ecclestone finishes her 8th over, and India not taking any chances against her. She can bowl 2 more and India would want to target someone else if they want to play things safe with the star spinner. Need 90 off 84 balls.
India 125/3 after 31 overs: Another boundary down the ground to release some pressure. Raj took on Ecclestone and just cleared the fielder at mid-on. She’s trying to play the field here.
India 120/3 after 30 overs (Raj 25, Kaur 12) The RRR is nearly 6 now. Knight and Glenn in tandem are giving the ones and twos (and the odd wide) but no boundaries at the moment for India.
A run-a-ball run-chase feels like the perfect time for Harmanpreet Kaur to get back into her groove. She stays till the end, fair chance India will see this through.
Another golden oldie has had a good day in England. An update from Wimbledon:
India 105/3 after 27 overs (Raj 20, Kaur 8): India need 116 from 20 overs. Getting towards the 6 RPO mark. Sciver and Glenn are keeping things tight.
India 95/3 after 25 overs: A milestone aside, this needs to be an innings of significant weightage from Mithali because the pressure is building on India. The captain is trying to find the boundaries when she can. Harman at the other end.
HISTORY-MAKER: The most runs in International cricket by a woman is a record that now belongs to Mithali Raj. She gets there with a lofted four down the ground.
India 88/3 after 23 overs: Lovely shot down the ground by Mithali Raj for four. Lofted in style. She has now reached the same tally as Edwards! One away from the record.
WICKET! Smriti Mandhana falls ONE RUN short of a ELEVENTH consecutive score of 50-plus in One Day Internationals while chasing. She is out for 49 and Eccletsone gets the wicket. 81/3 (20.5 ov)
India 79/2 after 20 overs: A maiden over from Ecclestone to Mithali.
India 79/2 after 19 overs: Another delightful shot through the legside by Mandhana. Her off-side game has always been class, but today she has played some lovely shots the other side as well.
India 71/2 after 17 overs: Mithali Raj is in the middle and she is 11 start of the all-time run record in women’s cricket. Gets going with a four down the leg side.
Over 15.5: WICKET! It’s another low score for Jemimah Rodrigues. One ball after surviving a close LBW appeal, she is bowled by Sophie Ecclestone. She is out for 4 off 21. Tried to late cut, but the tightness of the line from Ecclestone (and a bit of extra pace perhaps) make that a bad decision. India 66/2.
CLOSE CALL! A big appeal for LBW from England against Rodrigues again, this is given not out on field and that makes all the difference. Umpire’s call for hitting the stumps. Just clopping the bails. India 66/1.
India 65/1 after 15 overs (Mandhana 39, Rodrigues 4): Tidy over from Cross.
India 62/1 after 14 overs (Mandhana 37, Rodrigues 3): Elegance personified from Mandhana! Ecclestone cannot be an easy bowler to cover drive for a left-hander, given her ability to deceive batters. But the Indian plays one of the shots of the day in that over for four.
GOOD REVIEW: Rodrigues is given out LBW but it is reviewed. Not so confidently by her, but on the audio track one could hear the bat before pad. That’s the case. Inside edge. India 53/1 after 12.2 overs.
Most runs in ODIs while batting 2nd
| Player | Inns | Runs | Ave | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L Lee | 17 | 911 | 70.07 | 87.01 |
| S Mandhana | 11 | 773 | 128.83 | 100.52 |
| L Wolvaardt | 18 | 649 | 46.35 | 65.03 |
| TT Beaumont | 11 | 533 | 66.62 | 75.60 |
| AJ Healy | 10 | 470 | 52.22 | 114.35 |
Zenia D’Cunha: A comparatively sedate knock from Shafali Verma, 19 off 29 with a boundary before her wicket. But an experience of an ODI chase. Onus on Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues to build a stand now.
India 46/1 after 10 overs: England will fancy their chances of making inroads into this batting lineup here. Rodrigues is the new batter in. Ecclestone starts with a maiden over to Mandhana.
Over 8.6: WICKET! Kate Cross has started from where she left off in Taunton. Fresh from her five-for, she takes the first wicket in Worcester. Shafali Verma goes for a big shot over cover, but can’t time it right. Caught by Heather Knight. Shafali had just hit a four in that over too earlier. Perhaps thought Cross is someone she can unsettle early but the pacer has thrived when batters have come after her. India 46/1 after 9 overs.
India 42/0 after 8 overs (Verma 15, Mandhana 25): Commentator just says “SHOT!” as the ball leaves Mandhana’s bat after a cover drive. That’s all that needs to be said. Finishes the over with a cut behind point. Two fours in that Shrubsole over.
India 34/0 after 7 overs (Verma 15, Mandhana 17): And the battle continues. Bouncer from Brunt, Shafali awkwardly ducks underneath that but length ball later in the over and the Indian slams it down the ground for four.
India 25/0 after 5 overs (Verma 8, Mandhana 15): THREE FOURS IN AN OVER! Smriti Mandhana is up and running and she is the critical part of a run-chase for India. Her form has been terrific while batting second (stats coming up shortly). A well-placed pick-up shot, then a lovely square drive. The third one is a bit streaky. There was a mandatory Brunt fall-on-followthrough in that over.
India 12/0 after 4 overs (Verma 7, Mandhana 3): India not taking any chances early on.
India 8/0 after 3 overs (Verma 6, Mandhana 2): Brunt with another testing over to Shafali. No short stuff yet, perhaps playing hide-and-seek with the youngster. It’s like a boxing bout at the moment, says the commentator. A chess game too, would be an apt description.
Zenia D’Cunha: The bowling has done its bit and time for India’s first chase of this series Shafali Verma will be all the more crucial today, even though the target is just 220.
India 7/0 after 2 overs (Verma 6, Mandhana 1): A lofted shot over cover by Shafali off Shrubsole. Nothing streaky about that. Good timing and placement. First four of the innings.
India 1/0 after 1 over (Verma 1, Mandhana 0): A fascinating first over from Brunt to Verma! The battle begins again. Terrific away swingers that beat Shafali’s bat, perhaps expecting the short ball early. Footwork is not her strength but she has shown better technique on this tour than she did in that over. Ends with a streaky single.
Target for India: 220 (47 overs)
Shafali Verma, chasing in an ODI for the first time, and Smriti Mandhana are in the middle. Will England be able to defend the total or will India finish the ODIs with a win?
Innings break: Here’s a look at the Mandhana catch that wasn’t just spectacular but potentially game-changing.
England 219 all out in 47 overs: A superb last over for England even if it ends with a wicket for India and the hosts getting bowled out. Glenn came back for a second (as should all batters across the game off the last ball) and is run out. Deepti finishes with 47/3 in her 10 overs, 13* (corrected) coming off the last over.
FOUR-SIX! There’s that batting depth. England’s No 11 providing them a strong finish. Kate Cross with two superb hits down the ground, the six however the result of Shafali Verma moving forward a bit too much. Goes over head.
England 206/9 after 46 overs: Sarah Glenn is a handy batter and she finishes the penultimate over with a superbly lofted four over cover for four. England’s batting depth is impressive. Goswami finishes with 1/31 in 9 overs.
WICKET! Deepti Sharma’s over results in two wickets.! This one at the non-striker’s as she gets her hand on a shot back down the ground. Glenn the striker, Shrubsole the non-striker who is out for 1. England 197/9.
WICKET! India have finally managed to dismiss Sophia Dunkley on this tour after her impressive batting in the Test and 2nd ODI. Deepti Sharma has her third week. Bowled around the pads as she was trying to work one down the leg side. 196/8.
Breaking news: India have dismissed Sophia Dunkley!
Over 43.5: WICKET! Goswami and her accuracy. On point! Full length delivery, Ecclestone misses it and it seems fairly plumb. Review shows umpire’s call. India keep chipping away. 192/7 after 44 overs.
Over 43.4: HAVE INDIA MANAGED TO GET DUNKLEY OUT? Er, no. A direct hit from Mithali Raj but Dunkley has made it in on time. False excitement.
After 43 overs, England 190/6: Ecclestone ends the boundary drought! Powerful ball-striking by her. Picks up the pace and length off Poonam quickly, swept brilliantly.
After 42 overs, England 182/6
The commentators tell us the last boundary came in the 27th over! That’s impressive from control from Indian bowlers, it must be said. The pressure has brought a couple of wickets on too. (The singles and twos were on offer but they have kept England in check).
Over 40.6: WICKET! If ever there was a typical Poonam Yadav dismissal. She draws Brunt out, it’s the wrong ‘un and Taniya Bhatia makes no mistake. The unbroken partnership from last match is broken. England 177/6 after 41 overs. Six overs to go in the innings.
WICKET! WHAT A CATCH! BRILLIANT FROM SMRITI MANDHANA! The Indian opener has been great on the field today and she takes a superb catch to dismiss the dangerous Nat Sciver on 49. Runs a few yards to her left, puts in the dive and it is a catch to remember on a day when her fielding has been so good. Deepti Sharma with the wicket. 163/5 (37.3 ov)
After 37 overs, England 162/4 (Sciver 49, Dunkley 9)
India are yet to dismiss Sophia Dunkley, by the way! Will today be the day? (One T20I innings, one Test innings and the second ODI innings currently underway, so it’s a small sample space.) But to her credit, she has been so solid against the visitors in the past couple of weeks. We are now into the last 10 overs of the innings.
Over 33.6: WICKET! Just when it seemed like the match was drifting away from India again, Amy Jones falls. Caught at long on, Deepti Sharma with the breakthrough. Radha Yadav takes the catch (substitute for Harman, we think).
After 33 overs, England 146/3 (Sciver 43, Jones 16)
Kinda like in Taunton, England are just cruising through these overs. Not much pressure on the batters. Not for the lack of trying in terms of bowling changes as Deepti and Pandey and come back into the attack but the pressure is simply not building enough.
After 31 overs, England 140/3 (Sciver 40, Jones 13)
Six singles from Poonam’s over, and time for a drink.
After 30 overs, England 134/3 (Sciver 37, Jones 11)
England taking no chances against Goswami. The pacer’s figures read: 7-0-20-0 now.
After 29 overs, England 131/3 (Sciver 36, Jones 8)
Sciver continues to go at a strike rate of 100-plus. Has raced to 36 off 35 balls on a tricky surface to bat. India bring Goswami back, sensing the need to breakthrough here.
After 27 overs, England 125/3 (Sciver 33, Jones 5)
Expensive Harman over. A four each for the two batters.
A question worth asking: At what do we consider Nat Sciver as the premier allrounder of the game currently over Ellyse Perry? Has she already gotten there? Bats at No 4 like she owns that spot, always threatening with the ball. Terrific on the field too.
After 26 overs, England 115/3 (Sciver 28, Jones 0)
More delightful batting by Sciver. Drives through mid-off region for four off Rana, for another shot-of-the-day contender. She has played a few of those already.
Over 24.5: WICKET! Another well-set batter doesn’t quite convert a good start. Another England batter finds the fielder at deep midwicket. Captain Knight falls for 46, this time Harmanpreet with the wicket. A good little phase for India! Must be said, two soft dismissals for two England batters who looked to be going really well.
After 24 overs, England 105/2 (Knight 46, Sciver 18)
Knight brings up the 100 in the 23rd over with a delightful four past point.
Harman comes on to bowl...
After 22 overs, England 94/2 (Knight 37, Sciver 16)
Sciver plays one of the shots of the day with a drive down the ground to welcome Pandey back.
Was that a chance? Bhatia has been so good behind the stumps but that’s going down as a dropped catch. Rana appeals for a catch and there is disappointment as the ball pops out! Tough tough take down the leg side but missed chance alright. Next ball, Knight reaches 3000 ODI runs.
Shikha Pandey comes back...
After 20 overs, England 81/2 (Knight 31, Sciver 9)
Poonam Yadav seems to be slowing it up even further, than how she started. Might be the way to go on this pitch and pace variation is something she has spoken about recently. Sciver, the new batter, has started off like she has been batting in nets all morning. Another very even phase of 10 overs.
WICKET! Sneh Rana breaks the partnership! It’s another really good start not converted by Winfield Hill, who finds Goswami at deep midwicket. Seemed like a plan that was discussed by the captain and the bowler. The previous ball Knight tried that shot and it fell just short of the fielder, but LWH timed it a bit better than her captain and fell. India needed that. ENG 69/2 (17)
After 16 overs, England 67/1 (Winfield-Hill 36, Knight 26)
Captain Knight brings out the reverse sweep against Deepti and it is mighty effective. Races to the boundary.
After 15 overs, England 61/1 (Winfield-Hill 35, Knight 21)
England are keeping the scoreboard ticking. LWH is reading Poonam really well off the pitch it must be said. The Indian leggie went for runs in the previous match but picked up two wickets. She hasn’t come close yet today. Time for a drinks break.
After losing the in-form Beaumont for a duck, England have recovered quite nicely. A few half chances here and there for India but Winfield-Hill and captain Knight have added 50-plus since. ENG: 56/1 (14)
After 13 overs, England 52/1 (Winfield-Hill 29, Knight 18)
Another outside edge induced by Deepti and a diving Sneh Rana can’t quite stop it at first slip. More good energy on the field from Indian though. 50 comes up in the 13th over as the partnership looks like getting ready for a long haul.
After 11 overs, England 45/1 (Winfield-Hill 24, Knight 16)
Given the early indications of a slow, low pitch. This phase with Deepti and Poonam could be crucial for India. Another fantastic stop by Smriti Mandhana in that over, saving a certain boundary.
After 10 overs, England 42/1 (Winfield-Hill 22, Knight 15)
Partnership is into the 40s. Deepti starts off with a loopy off spinner, that draws the outside edge but Knight’s lucky that it goes wide of the slip. An even powerplay that, but England would be happier at the moment one thinks.
After 9 overs, England 40/1 (Winfield-Hill 22, Knight 13)
A boundary for Heather Knight, brilliantly flicked through square leg. England have wrestled back the momentum after a good start for India. Deepti Sharma, as she usually does, comes on to bowl the 10th over.
After 8 overs, England 35/1 (Winfield-Hill 22, Knight 8)
This is what England do so well! They are aware of when the pressure is building and always a release over or two up their arsenal. LWG with three terrific shots for three fours in Pandey’s over. Not bad balls mind you, two drives through the off and one down the ground.
After 7 overs, England 23/1 (Winfield-Hill 10, Knight 8)
Three runs in Pandey’s over, two in Goswami’s. More superb ground fielding in this phase by India. They are not giving easy runs.
By the way, regarding the fielding changes for free hit this is the official ruling:
Neither field changes nor the exchange of individuals between fielding positions are permitted for free hit deliveries unless:
21.19.3.1 There is a change of striker (the provisions of clause 41.2 shall apply), or
21.19.3.2 The No Ball was the result of a fielding restriction breach, in which case the field may be changed to the extent of correcting the breach.
After 5 overs, England 18/1 (Winfield-Hill 9, Knight 6)
Tidy over from Goswami, just a double down the fine leg region.
After 4 overs, England 16/1 (Winfield-Hill 9, Knight 4)
Pandey spoke about how good Taniya Bhatia is while standing up to the stumps and that was more sensational wicket-keeping from her in that over, almost pulled off a ridiculous stumping down the leg side while standing up to a pacer. Not only gathered the ball, but flicked it on to the stumps as well. LWH was back into the crease though. LWH also scored a lovely boundary inside out.
After 3 overs, England 11/1 (Winfield-Hill 0, Knight 4)
A boundary for LWH, who has looked in great touch for most of India’s ongoing tour. Pushed through mid-on region. It seemed like a no ball was given but for some reason Bhatia was allowed to come up to the stumps. No damage done from the Indian point of view.
After 2 overs, England 5/1 (Winfield-Hill 0, Knight 4)
Not the best of follow up deliveries from Pandey after the wicket. Short and wide, Knight puts it away for four.
Over 1.4: WICKET! Shikha Pandey strikes in her first over and it’s the big wicket of Tammy Beaumont! Short of length, but the ball doesn’t rise much. Trapped in front. she doesn’t bother reviewing. More indications of a slow-low pitch. England 1/1.
After 1 over, England 1/0 (Beaumont 0, Winfield-Hill 0)
After a wide to start, tidy as ever by Goswami. Terrific field by Mandhana at point off the last ball to save a boundary. Sets a good tone. The pitch could be slower than the ones from the first two ODIs, the commentators tell us. It does have a very Indian feel to it.
The body language on the field was one of the big improvements in Taunton. Will we see more of that today? Both teams unchanged, 47 overs per side. India will be bowling first in Worcester. Hopefully a closer game today than the first two. Two points at stake. Jhulan Goswami to start...
TEAM NEWS:
India: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Mithali Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Taniya Bhatia, Shikha Pandey, Jhulan Goswami, Poonam Yadav
England: Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Winfield-Hill, Heather Knight, Nat Sciver, Amy Jones, Sophia Dunkley, Katherine Brunt, Sophie Ecclestone, Anya Shrubsole, Sarah Glenn, Kate Cross
Confirmation of team news awaited, but looks like both teams unchanged.
TOSS: First things first, Mithali Raj (as expected) has recovered from her neck issues, and she is leading India today. She has won the toss and opted to bowl first in Worcester.
22-year-old Sophie Ecclestone today becomes a 5-year *veteran* in international cricket.
4.03 pm: Good news from Worcester.
3.50 pm: A delay in Worcester is the perfect time for you to read this feature by Zenia D’Cunha
3.40 pm: As we wait for further updates, Shikha Pandey (insightful as she usually is) spoke to the media on Friday ahead of the third match. You can read more about it here.
3.30 pm: As mentioned earlier, there is an inspection scheduled for 3.45 pm.
3:00 PM: The start of the match is most likely to be delayed given, you guessed it, rain in England. The pitch is covered as of now.
Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the third One Day International between India and England to be played Worcester. Mithali Raj and Co have already lost the ODI series, going down in the first two matches. But this is not a dead rubber, they can still salvage the multi-format series, after a drawn Test and T20Is up next. More importantly, the final ODI is another chance for the 2017 runners-up to try out team combinations as part of the preparations for next year’s World Cup against Heather Knight’s world champions.
First ODI recap here.
Second ODI recap here.