London [UK], July 5: In a nail-biting finish at The Oval, England Women held their nerve to defeat India Women by five runs in the third T20I, keeping the five-match series alive at 2-1. Despite several dropped catches, the hosts managed to defend a competitive 172-run total, denying India a series sweep.
With regular skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt ruled out due to injury, Tammy Beaumont stepped in as captain and led her side to a crucial win. India’s chase started on a fiery note with openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma taking the attack to England’s bowlers, racing to 61/0 by the end of the powerplay.
England’s fielding woes were evident as they dropped multiple catches, including one from Lauren Bell, who stepped over the boundary rope while attempting a catch, conceding a six. However, Sophie Ecclestone broke the opening stand by clean bowling Shafali for a quickfire 47 off 25 balls.
Mandhana kept India in the hunt, scoring a fighting 56 off 49 deliveries, while Jemimah Rodrigues added 20 runs before falling to Lauren Filer. Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored 23, nearly pulled off a dramatic finish but fell on the final ball while trying to clear the circle, with India finishing at 166/5.
Despite multiple fielding lapses—including dropped catches by Bell, Ecclestone, and Scholfield—England just managed to hold on, thanks to some composed death bowling.
Earlier, England posted 171/9 after a flying start from openers Sophia Dunkley (75) and Danielle Wyatt-Hodge (66), who stitched a 137-run opening stand—only the second time both England openers scored fifties in the same T20I innings against India.
India’s bowlers staged a brilliant comeback in the final four overs, taking 8 wickets for just 25 runs. Arundhati Reddy led the charge with a triple strike, including two wickets off the last two balls of her over. Shree Charani and Deepti Sharma also came close to hat-tricks as England collapsed from 137/0 to 171/9.
Radha Yadav made history by claiming her 100th T20I wicket, dismissing stand-in captain Beaumont. The late collapse, however, wasn’t enough to prevent England from registering their first win of the series.
Brief Scores:
England Women: 171/9 (Dunkley 75, Wyatt-Hodge 66; Arundhati Reddy 3/20, Deepti Sharma 2/28)
India Women: 166/5 (Mandhana 56, Shafali Verma 47; Ecclestone 1/22, Filer 2/34)
Result: England Women won by 5 runs. India lead series 2-1.