Live Score updates England Women vs India Women Test Day 2: Heather Knight returns. Wicket maiden for the skipper as she removes Shikha Pandey. India skipper Mithali Raj walks in with a task at hand.
Day 1 report: The India women’s cricket team, led by experienced skipper Mithali Raj, returned to Test cricket in some fashion, with their spinners helping them script a comeback to leave England in a tricky situation at 269-6 on Day 1.
India named five Test debutants in the playing eleven-Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Sneh Rana, Shafali Verma and wicketkeeper Taniya Bhatiya, and the spin duo of Deepti and Rana impressed right away by sharing five wickets amongst themselves.
The hosts started off on a positive note with openers Tammy Beaumont and Lauren Winfield-Hill scripting a 69-run stand, before the latter departed for 35. Beaumont (66) played her part as well, but it was Heather Knight (95), who stole the show later on her 100th appearance as England skipper.
England were comfortable heading to tea at 162-2, with Knight and all-rounder Nat Sciver (42) at the other end, but it was in the third session where India completely turned the game around.
The DRS reviews just did not go in the hosts’ favour as Sciver departed in the 73rd over before Amy Jones (1) followed three overs later.
Sciver was dropped by Deepti early on in the innings, but the latter compensated for it by trapping the English all-rounder leg before.
Sciver had forged a 90-run stand for the third wicket with Knight.
With England in a tricky position at 244-4 following Amy Jones’ wicket, the task was cut out for Knight to bring the hosts back on track. But the innings changed drastically when Knight was trapped on the pad with Deepti coming around the wicket. She was initially given out, but Knight desperately went for the DRS, but there was no bat involved. Ball-tracking showed the ball was pitching in line, with the impact also intact, and the wickets staying with umpire’s call. Knight was gone, and England, starting on a formidable note, looked in deep trouble.
The task will be upto debutant Sophia Bunkley (12*) and Katherine Brunt (7*) to revive the hosts’ fortunes with England resuming Day 2 at 269-6.
