For England, disaster has been avoided; the series remains alive. Never previously had India conquered these shores in T20I cricket but it looked for a long time that they would do so with two games to spare having dominated the opening two encounters. Yet shorn of their skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt, a rollicking century stand for the first-wicket between Sophia Dunkley and Danni Wyatt-Hodge just about pushed the hosts out of the reach; though a dreadful collapse and some failings in the field are cause for continuing concern.
When their openers had blasted to 137-0 from 15 overs, Edwards might have expected her side to power out of sight. They did not, a collapse of 9-31 limiting them to a total that India very nearly hauled in – but the side will be better for closing out a close one, Lauren Filer, Issy Wong and Lauren Bell combining cool heads and hostile bowling to hold on. Certainly, it has been inconvenient to lose their two most senior figures to injury this summer, Sciver-Brunt’s groin issue following a hamstring problem for her predecessor Heather Knight, but this is far from a callow side – and yet, just as during the Ashes, they have looked short of the ruthlessness required against the top teams.
A win was much needed, though, to prevent this series deteriorating in a manner akin to that trip Down Under. Credit must go to Tammy Beaumont, filling in for Sciver-Brunt, for getting her side back on track when they seemed to be sliding off the rails, and to her bowling attack, who eventually found the answers to some tough questions posed by India.
England’s desire to do something different was evident at the toss, with stand-in skipper Beaumont confirming three changes after opting to bat first. One, of course, was enforced, with Paige Scholfield replacing the absent Sciver-Brunt on her home, but the two in the bowling attack – Wong’s venom preferred to Em Arlott’s accuracy and Charlie Dean’s off-breaks to Linsey Smith’s left-arm darts – was a nod to the punishment India’s batters had meted out in the two thrashings that had opened this series.
Dunkley and Wyatt-Hodge had been parted after seven and six balls, respectively, in the opening two matches in this series; a need for firmer foundations had clearly been relayed as they began without undue risk. It was Dunkley who first ventured something more expansive, an immaculate straight drive off Amanjot Kaur for four bettered later by a similar shot off Shree Charani that landed a foot or so over the rope.
Wyatt-Hodge took a little longer to hit her stride but was soon on the move. Having been given a life by Jemimah Rodrigues at deep midwicket, the powerful right-hander deposited Charani over the same fielder’s head two balls later. It was her younger colleague, though, who looked in more fluent touch throughout, a half-century brought up from 35 balls with a punch to long-on with Wyatt-Hodge content to stay in her slipstream.
On paper, England perhaps looked a batter light but the platform being laid was outstanding. Back-to-back boundaries off Sneh Rana took Wyatt-Hodge to her 20th 50 in the format. When Dunkley finally fell for 75, the partnership had tallied 137 and left the rest of the order a furious five overs in which to add their own input. But they could barely even last that long: No 11 Bell was required to unexpectedly strap her pads on to negotiate the final four balls.
A total of 171 felt distinctly under-par given the manner in which the openers had played. Early wickets felt vital but Bell’s shelling of a steepling top edge from Shafali Verma on the boundary was an inauspicious start. By the time the cavalier right-hander was eventually bowled by Sophie Ecclestone, she had blasted 47 from 25 balls – Bell’s error had been costly.
When Alice Capsey later put down a simpler chance to give Harmanpreet Kaur a life, the pieces of an all-too-familiar and perplexing puzzle were falling into place for England. But a frustrated Filer, who had been denied, cranked it up, removing Smriti Mandhana for 56 before clonking Richa Ghosh on the head with a sharp bouncer. From there, Wong, Ecclestone and Bell hit the right areas to keep England in the hunt.
