England thrash India to set up ODI series decider

Lord’s is Lord’s second one-day international.

India 143-8 (29 overs): Mandhana 42 (51), Ecclestone 3-27

England 116-2 (21 overs): Jones 46* (57), Beaumont 34 (35)

England won the series level 1-1 with eight wickets (DLS method).

In a Lord’s rain-affected encounter, England thrashing India to level the one-day international series.

India came out on top of the field with a score of 144-8 after being initially reduced to 29 overs.

Before another rain delay increased their target to 115 from 24 overs, the hosts made it 115 with 18 balls to go before falling eight wickets on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method.

Amy Jones added 54 for Tammy Beaumont’s first wicket and 48 for her second with captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, all for a score of 46 not out.

India’s batters struggled for fluency on a slow surface as they fell 72-5 inside 16 overs after heavy rain in the morning delayed the start until 15:00 BST.

Another inconsistent field effort from England, who dropped four catches and misjudged a few more chances, went unpunished.

In the fifth over, Lauren Bell had a crucial opportunity to drop Smriti Mandhana in her follow-through, and the opener appeared to be leading the innings despite the slog of wickets waiting in her path.

However, Mandhana put a strain on herself in the 21st over when she was bowled out to Charlie Dean off Linsey Smith for 42 from 51 balls, despite only Deepti Sharma’s unbeaten 30 giving the innings a glimmer of credibility.

England’s spinners consistently bowled brilliantly in tandem throughout the innings, with only 3-27 of 3-28 from Smith, 2-28 from Smith, and 1-31 from Dean.

A comprehensive victory over India is a big boost for Sciver-Brunt’s side after they looked uninspired during their first ODI at Southampton, despite the reduced overs being less beneficial for England’s World Cup preparation.

After four hours of waiting for the rain to stop, England’s captain chose to bowl first, and the bowlers’ much-improved discipline prevented India’s potent batting line-up from gaining any momentum.

In the second over, Em Arlott struck Pratika Rawal with a sharp yorker, and Mandhana and Harleen Deol consolidated cautiously with a stand of 40 before the latter was brilliantly caught and bowled by a diving Ecclestone for 16.

The middle order then fell apart: Harmanpreet Kaur, Dean, Jemimah Rodrigues, Jemimah Rodrigues, Dean, Dean, Rodrigues, Jemimah, and Richa Ghosh, Ecclestone’s captain, were all bowled for seven, and Ecclestone had Harmanpreet Kaur for three.

India only managed 12 fours in the entire innings, five of which came from Mandhana’s bat, who was constantly unsure whether to attack or concentrate on batting all the way through the innings.

After Mandhana’s departure, Sharma was India’s last chance, but some odd running between the wickets with number 10 Kranti Goud led to her being denied the strike in the final overs, leading to a subpar total.

England coach Charlotte Edwards was open about the need for a bigger challenge against India in the wake of their side’s one-sided series win over West Indies to start the summer in order to get a clearer idea of how they would respond to pressure.

With the World Cup in hand, India has already won the previous T20 series, giving England exactly what they need.

In the first ODI, Jones and Beaumont both suffered cheap losses, but they both reacted positively when faced with a difficult target and ran to 27 in three overs.

The last time these two teams played on this ground, when Sharma ran out Dean at the non-striker’s end, caused a stir. When India appealed for Beaumont to be out obstructing the field and hurried back to her crease and pushed her right as Rodrigues’ throw passed by, there was a chance for another unusual dismissal.

Before Beaumont missed a reverse sweep off Sneh Rana and was lbw for 34, England’s openers continued to accelerate.

As Jones and Sciver-Brunt rotated the strike at will, India were passive on the field and were unable to take any wickets.

My bowling is progressing steadily. I had a great time.

Nat Sciver-Brunt, England’s captain, said, “We bowled a better length and made it really difficult for their batters.

There was a lot of pressure on me because the openers did a great job at the top.

Harmanpreet Kaur, the skipper of India, said, “We didn’t bat well. They didn’t give us any opportunities to carry out.