Alice Capsey’s fiery 82 and Heather Knight’s composed unbeaten 70 powered England to a series-clinching six-wicket victory over India within the third and closing Girls’s T20I in Taunton, U.Okay.
England gained the sequence 2-1, additionally giving India some factors to ponder forward of the Girls’s T20 World Cup the place Harmanpreet Kaur and Co. will face Pakistan of their event opener in Birmingham on June 14.
England did the rapid process of cutting down 181 by reaching 184 for 4 in 18.3 overs.
It was their second highest run-chase within the shortest format, constructed round a 137-run alliance from simply 76 balls for the fourth wicket between Capsey and Knight.
However the starting of that journey was stuffed with turbulence as England misplaced openers Sophia Dunkley, Danny Wyatt-Hodge and Amy Jones inside the Energy Play for a mere 38 on the board.
Pacer Kranti Goud, who has been recalled to the facet, did the early injury, jettisoning Hodge and Jones. Hodge’s dismissal got here via a beautiful supply that nipped again to rattle her stumps.
However England discovered stability as Capsey, who struck 9 fours and three sixes in her 43-ball innings, and Knight, whose 42-ball innings featured 10 fours, blunted Indian bowlers.
Each Capsey and Knight wanted a confidence-boost after latest failures, and so they did it on a must-win event.
They duo relied on beautiful timing and placement to beat back Indian pacers and spinners alike. Capsey raced to her fifty in 27 balls, whereas Knight was tad extra sedate off 31 balls.
After reaching her fifty, Capsey raised the tempo of her knock, punishing left-arm spinner Sree Charani for 4, 6, 6.
Knight, alternatively, was not hesitant to placed on show her modern powers via reverse sweeps or higher cuts.
Capsey fell to pacer Arundhati Reddy however by then England wanted simply six runs to win with loads of balls in retailer.
Earlier, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur overcame a sluggish begin to make a 40-ball 56 and obtained loads of assist from seasoned Deepti Sharma (32, 24b) because the vacationers reached 180 for 5.
The fifth wicket pair added a useful 67 runs to bolster India’s innings.
Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana departed early however India nonetheless ended the Energy Play at a powerful 57 for 2, courtesy the adventures of Yastika Bhatia (32, 18b) and Jemimah Rodrigues (29, 19b).
Harmanpreet discovered her contact after a moderately sluggish begin, and hammered Lauren Bell for a few fours to up the ante.
The skipper reached her fifty within the twentieth over off 38 balls, her seventeenth T20I fifty however first in opposition to England.
It helped India attain a aggressive complete, however was not sufficient to cease the house facet.
Scoreboard
India
Smriti Mandhana lbw b Dean 8 Shafali Verma c Dean b Smith 11 Yastika Bhatia run out (Ecclestone) 32 Jemimah Rodrigues b Bell 29 Harmanpreet Kaur not out 56 Deepti Sharma c Dean b Bell 32 Richa Ghosh not out 6
Extras: (W-6) 6
Whole: ( For five wickets in 20 overs) 180
Fall of wickets: 1-19 2-36 3-60 4-100 5-167
Bowling: Lauren Bell 4-0-36-2, Linsey Smith 4-0-40-1, Charlie Dean 4-0-33-1, Sophie Ecclestone 4-0-33-0, Dani Gibson 4-0-38-0
England
Sophia Dunkley c Rodrigues b Reddy 16 Danni Wyatt-Hodge b Gaud 5 Amy Jones c D Sharma b Gaud 2 Alice Capsey c NSS Sharma b Reddy 82 Heather Knight not out 70 Freya Kemp not out 2
Extras:(LB-2 W-5) 7
Whole:(For 4 wickets in 18.3 overs) 184
Fall of wickets: 1-14 2-24 3-38 4-175
Bowling: Arundhati Reddy 4-0-31-2, Kranti Gaud 4-0-40-2, Nandani Sharma 3-0-32-0, Shree Charani 3-0-37-0, Deepti Sharma 2.3-0-26-0, Shafali Verma 2-0-16-0
We weren’t in a position to construct strain with dot balls, can’t repeat the error in WC: Mandhana
Vice-captain Smriti Mandhana pinned the defeat to India’s failure to bowl sufficient dot balls, and hoped to not repeat the error within the upcoming Girls’s T20 World Cup.
“We undoubtedly began extraordinarily properly with the ball, (lowering England to) 35 for 3. I wouldn’t actually take something away from the partnership that they had. I feel they performed actually good cricketing photographs,” Mandhana mentioned on the post-match press convention.
“In hindsight, we might have been in a position to construct strain with just a few dot balls, however we weren’t ready to do this. We will certainly have a look at this recreation in a approach the place we will do higher and never repeat these errors within the World Cup coming forward,” she added.
Regardless of the defeat, the left-handed opener took some positives from the sequence such because the return to type of skipper Harmanpreet Kaur. Harmanpreet struck a 40-ball 56 to take India to 180 for 5. “She batted amazingly properly. Harman, when she is at her finest, is a delight to observe. She performed everywhere in the floor. It’s a very vital innings beneath strain, particularly after we wanted that knock to get us to 180+.
“I really feel everyone seems to be in good nick. It’s a good signal going ahead for the World Cup that Jemi, Harman, everyone seems to be trying actually lovely to observe from the skin. Hopefully, I can watch from the non-strikers finish,” she mentioned.
Mandhana refused to purchase into the hype round a cricket match between India and Pakistan, as a substitute the 29-year-old needed the crew to concentrate on the World Cup in its entirety. “We did play India-Pakistan on the Commonwealth Video games in Birmingham (2022) and we had a promote out. Not solely India-Pakistan, I simply really feel we actually have to hype up the T20 World Cup. We don’t have to hype up just one match.
“It’s already overrated. I’m certain lots of people are going to come back and assist us. Hopefully, we will put up a present for them,” mentioned Mandhana.
Printed – June 03, 2026 12:31 pm IST
