Win in India decider would be ‘shift’ for England

According to all-rounder Charlie Dean, winning Tuesday’s one-day series decider against India would “shift” the narrative around the England women’s team.

In a rain-shortened match at Lord’s on Saturday, England brought the three-game series to a three-match winning record, keeping the score at 1-1 heading into Tuesday’s final game at Chester-le-Streeet.

England won all six matches against West Indies at the start of the summer, but India did so in the T20 series that followed after being hammered by Australia in the winter as they were beaten by Australia in the Ashes.

It would feel like a bit of a shift, Dean said, “Losing the T20 series and the first game of the 50-over.”

Before their World Cup campaign kicks off on October 3 against South Africa in India, England’s final official game on Tuesday will be against South Africa in India.

England’s ability to win bilateral series outside of World Cups but lose pressure matches at major tournaments has been a constant criticism of the country in recent years.

In a winner-takes-all match against West Indies, they fell to South Africa in the semi-finals of the 2023 T20 World Cup, and they were eliminated from the competition last year in the group stage.

The decision on Tuesday will be as close to the world’s events as possible.

We’ve seen bilateral matches where they were really played, but we’ve never had the same level of intensity or clinicalness in those pressure situations, Dean said.

“Any chance that we can replicate that in bilateral series is ideal practice.

“We obviously want to win, but even if we don’t, we can take those lessons, continue to improve, and prepare for a good 50-over competition.” The most crucial is that.