CHENNAI: It was a night where nothing went in India’s favour. Their performance at Chester-le-Street on Sunday in the first T20I against an England side that did not have Heather Knight, Natalie Sciver and Katherine Brunt was not what was expected of them. Especially not after finishing second in the Commonwealth Games.
They went in with six spinners and two pacers — six all-rounders in the eight options — into the game that was delayed due to rain. And it all seemed going well up until the seventh over when India cruised 51/2. From thereon, things went only downhill as spinners Sophie Ecclestone and Sarah Glenn (4/23) choked the run flow with regular wickets. India crumbled before scrapping their way to 132/7, largely thanks to Deepti Sharma’s late flourish (unbeaten 29 off 24 balls).
It only got worse, however, as, despite Renuka Thakur and Deepti creating chances with the new ball, India were abysmal on the field. They dropped catches, let boundaries go through so much so that the hosts chased down the target in 13 overs. The way they operated on the field, at some level, it felt like India were not prepared to get on the field after the continuous rain in Durham. Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur said as much after the match.
Brief scores: India 132/7 in 20 ovs (Deepti 29 n.o, Mandhana 23; Glenn 4/23) lost to England 134/1 in 13 ovs (Dunkley 61 n.o; Rana 1/31).
Full story: newindianexpress.com