Spinners keep India in hunt for consolation win against England Women in third ODI

By PTI

WORCESTER: India spinners took wickets at regular intervals to nullify a promising start by England as the tourists bundled out the hosts for 219 in the rain-curtailed third and final Women’s One-day International, here on Saturday.

Looking for a consolation win, India invited England to bat under overcast conditions after the contest became a 47-overs per side affair but as has been the case in the series, the hosts largely remained untroubled.

They were placed comfortably at 110 for two but their strategy to attack Indian spinners resulted in wickets falling in clutches with a middle-order collapse.

Natalie Sciver’s confident 49 and Heather Knight’s composed 46 propped the England innings while Deepti Sharma (3/47) took three wickets for India.

Sophia Dunkley (28) and Kate Cross (16 not out) chipped in with useful cameos.

Sneh Rana (1/31), Poonam Yadav (1/43) and Harmanpreet Kaur (1/24)accounted for one batter each.

Indian enjoyed early success when Shikha Pandey trapped opener Tammy Beaumont (0) leg before. The positive intent of the home batters that Indians had to, yet again, toil hard without much success initially.

Knight and in-form Lauren Windfield-Hill stroked, drove and nudged the India bowlers with ease to keep a decent run-rate.

Knight used the sweep shot effectively while Windfield-Hill used her feet well to charge down the wicket.

Leg-spinner Yadav enticed the batters with her flighted and full length deliveries but did not pose much danger.

Sneh, who bowled a better length, broke the 67-run stand when Winfield-Hill went for a slog sweep but ended up holing out to Shikha Pandey at deep mid-wicket.

Natalie Sciver played freely, driving the balls with exquisite timing.

Her 49 came off 59 balls with five boundaries.

Amy Jones (17) though could not convert her good start and was dismissed by Deepti, looking for a big shot.

Sciver was denied her fifty by Smriti Mandhana, who pulled of a stunning diving catch in the deep when the Briton went after Deepti.

Knight was closing in on her first fifty of the series but her sweep shot off Harmanpreet landed straight into the hands of Pandey at long-on.

The Indian fielders were sharp and agile as they stropped a few runs.

More wickets fell when England made a final push.