WHEN Sophia Dunkley walked out to bat at No 5 in the first ODI against India on Wednesday, England were in a spot of bother. They had just lost Emma Lamb, who looked set for a big score, with the scoreboard reading 91/3.
Ten balls and six runs later, Dunkley watched England's best batter and captain Nat Sciver-Brunt get out to a stunning catch by Jemimah Rodrigues off Sneh Rana. With the Indian spinner applying the brakes, the hosts were in trouble.
Dunkley, however, did not fluster. Joined by Alice Davison-Richards, Dunkley kept the scoreboard moving in singles and doubles. The duo were in no hurry as the first goal was to build a partnership and bat for the next 15 overs. They did even better. Together, ADR and Dunkley added 106 runs for the fifth wicket with both of them bringing up their fifties.
On a surface that was on the slower side, Indian spinners, especially Rana, were able to take the pace off, ensuring that there were no easy boundaries. However, after the early wickets from Kranti Goud, who made the new ball seam around, Dunkley and ADR used their feet as well as the crease to negate the spinners. Just when it looked like both of them were set for big scores, ADR had a momentary lapse of concentration and was stumped off the bowling of N Shree Charani for 53 runs.
Dunkley, meanwhile, took England past the 250-run mark and fell on the final delivery of the innings after making 83 from 92 balls. It was her innings that took England to 258/6 despite India's disciplined bowling. For the visitors, it was Goud (2/55) and Rana (2/31) who stole the show with the ball.
Brief scores: England 258/ in 50 ovs (Sophia Dunkley 83; Kranti Goud 2/55, Sneh Rana 2/31) vs India.