Women's Cricket
India tour of England: Dunkley, Wyatt-Hodge keep hosts alive with win in third T20I
India lead the five-match series 2-1.
England women clinched a last-ball thriller to beat India women by five runs. (Photo credit: BCCI Women)
Openers Sophia Dunkley and Danielle Wyatt-Hodge hit attacking half-centuries as England beat India by five runs in third T20I at the Kennington Oval in London on Friday to keep the five-match series alive.
Having opted to bat first after winning the toss, Dunkley and Wyatt-Hodge took the Indian bowlers to cleaners, stitching a century opening stand.
The duo added 137 in just 15.2 overs before Dunkley was snapped up by off-spinner Deepti Sharma for a 53-ball 75, which included seven boundaries and a six.
Dunkley's wicket brought a much needed halt in the run flow for India, as Wyatt-Hodge too feel soon after for a 42-ball 66 to pacer Arundanti Reddy.
Much to the dismay of England, the rest of their batters fell like a pack of cards with nobody except Sophie Ecclestone (10) touching the double figure mark in the innings.
From 137/0, England were restricted to 171/9 in their 20 overs as Reddy and Sharma shared six wickets among themselves with both striking thrice.
The young Sree Charani, albeit expensive, was once again among the wickets, finishing with figures of 2-43.
Chasing a competitive total, India too got off to a brilliant start as opener Shafali Verma finally found some form after two forgettable innings in the last two matches.
Verma raced to a 25-ball 47 with seven boundaries and two sixes, as she added a 85 runs for the opening wicket with vice captain Smriti Mandhana in just nine overs.
After Verma was cleaned up by Ecclestone, Mandhana found an able ally in Jemimah Rodrigues (20) to ensure that India did not lose their way after the explosive start.
However, once Rodrigues was caught off Lauren Filer, things fell apart for India.
Mandhana (56) fell soon after to Filer and the incoming batters struggled to get going.
Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur struggled to keep up with the required run rate, while wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh had a rare off-day with the bat as England dried up the boundaries.
Cruising at one stage with Verma calling the shots, India eventually fell five runs short of the target. They finished with 166/5 in their 20 overs.
Filer was the pick of the bowlers for England, finishing with figures of 2/30.
