Danni Wyatt shone on her record 150th T20 international appearance as England began their first tour of India in four years with an impressive 38-run victory in Mumbai.
Wyatt hit 75 and Nat Sciver-Brunt made 77, with the pair sharing a match-winning stand in an imposing total of 197 for six.
Sophie Ecclestone ensured their work did not go to waste, rounding out the result with figures of three for 15 on her comeback appearance after four months out with a shoulder injury.
Opener Wyatt began the match by becoming the first English cricketer to reach the cap landmark but soon found herself in a scrap at the Wankhede Stadium, losing two batting partners in the first over of the day and before she had even got off the mark.
Renuka Singh was responsible for her side’s fine start, bowling Sophia Dunkley via a deflection off the bat and then knocking over Alice Capsey for a golden duck as she took out off stump with a beauty.
Wyatt and Sciver-Brunt were unfazed by the double setback and proceeded to put on 138 off the next 87 balls.
Wyatt helped herself to eight fours and two sixes, the first a slog sweep off Deepti Sharma and the second a big swing over long-off charging debutant Shreyanka Patil.
Sciver-Brunt added 13 boundaries of her own as the scoreboard raced along but Wyatt’s 47-ball attack ended with five overs left as she was stumped off newcomer Saika Ishaque.
Captain Heather Knight fell cheaply and Sciver-Brunt was caught behind in the 19th but Amy Jones ensured an action-packed finish by scoring 23 off nine balls at the death.
Sciver-Brunt was back in the thick of things early in the chase, coming on for the third over and forcing an error from the dangerous Smriti Mandhana, who was bowled middle stump.
Shafali Verma collected a handful of fours as she kept India in touch with the required rate but when Freya Kemp had Jemima Rodrigues caught behind in the final powerplay over it was another big boost to the tourists’ cause.
India were relying on a big stand between Verma and Harmanpreet Kaur, the latter briefly looking in rude health before Ecclestone’s arrival spelled the end. The left-arm spinner had not played since dislocating her shoulder in August but needed just one sighter before bowling Kaur via an inside edge.
With five overs left India still needed 74, leaving England to mop up a clinical win as Ecclestone added the battling Verma (52) and Kanika Ahuja to her haul.
