India women secured a historic victory on the fourth and final day of the Lord’s Test match. After four days of compelling cricket in the first-ever women’s Test match at the Home of Cricket, India women led by Harmanpreet Kaur defeated the hosts by a massive 270 runs.
England batting collapses as Sophie Ecclestone stands tall
Resuming their final-day chase on 130-6, England women faced a daunting target of 457 runs. Lots of hopes were on Amy Jones, who resumed with a gritty unbeaten 52. Bu she was dismissed early in the day for 54 after being caught by Smriti Verma off Sneh Rana, a wicket that effectively broke the back of England’s resistance. Against all the odds, Sophie Ecclestone showcased immense character to score a gritty 50 but she found little support at the other end.
The final hour saw Deepti Sharma dismantle the lower order with clinical precision as she claimed two wickets for 12 runs. Meanwhile, Ecclestone kept standing tall like a lone warrior. After being dropped twice- by Rana at second slip and the wicketkeeper Yastika Bhatia, Ecclestone registered her highest Test score. However, the historic match concluded shortly before lunch when Sneh Rana gone through her defence, bundling out England for 186. Rana was the peak of the bowlers for India in the second innings, finishing with 4 for 42 in the second innings.
Historic win for India women at Lord’s
India’s historic win at Lord’s was especially memorable for Yastika Bhatia and debutant medium-pacer Kranti Gaud. Bhatia’s second-innings 113 made her the first woman to score a Test century at the venue, while Gaud’s 5-37 in the first innings and 2-54 in the second earned her the Player of the Match award on debut. Both players also secured places on the prestigious honours board in the visiting team’s dressing room.
For the hosts, the occasion was bittersweet. While the atmosphere at the iconic venue was electric, the match served as a poignant farewell for England veterans Heather Knight and Tammy Beaumont. The duo, integral to England’s past successes, received a respectful send-off from the crowd as they played their final international innings.
For India, on the other hand, this victory is a statement of their growing red-ball prowess. This also marked their fourth win against England in women’s Tests – their most against a single opponent. They are clearly very strong in this format and will hope for BCCI to push for more multi-day games in upcoming tours.
Brief scores: India Women 285 (Smriti Mandhana 83, Harmanpreet Kaur 58; Sophie Ecclestone 3-68) & 341/7 decl. (Yastika Bhatia 113, Smriti Mandhana 70; Sophie Ecclestone 5-118) beat England Women 170 (Amy Jones 52; Kranti Gaud 5-37, Sayali Satghare 2-40) & 176 (Amy Jones 54, Sophie Ecclestone 50; Sneh Rana 4-42) by 270 runs.
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