Brilliance from India today. They batted poorly in their warm-up against New Zealand last week, but brought their A-game today. First a partnership of 144 between Mandhana and Punam Raut to open the innings, with Mandhana’s 90 keeping them well up on run rate while Raut anchored. Once the first wicket fell, Raut made up ground in terms of strike rate while building to 86, allowing Raj to play in support. Finally Raj was able to surge to 71 at near a run a ball, holing out from the last ball of the match, while Harmanpreet played the late-overs cameo including a handsome six.
Pressure was on England early, with India working through Beaumont, Taylor, and Sciver, while tight bowling lifted the run rate. Knight stuck it out but was run out as she started to lift her tempo, and from there it was all on Wilson with Brunt briefly in support. Who knows, Wilson just might have notched a breakthrough ton and an unlikely win, but another bit of instinctive fielding from India brought her undone for 81. India’s catching was poor, India, but their ground fielding and throws were excellent, meaning credit had to go more to them for four run-outs than blame to England haplessness.
Which left it 281 versus 246 today. Gunn’s 0-46 from 10 overs is worth a mention, after Shrubsole and Brunt took some tap. Hartley, Hazell and Knight all did a job with the ball. But India’s spinners did a better one, with 0-43 from Bisht’s 9 overs, plus the run out of Wilson; 3-47 for Sharma, plus the run out of Brunt; and 1-51 from Yadav’s 10. Pandey was also key, taking the openers out to end with 2-35 from 7, while even with some late tap Goswami conceded a respectable 39 from 7 overs.
That’s it from us - the full poetry of Vithushan Ehantharajah’s report will be up shortly, hopefully more about cricket than warm evenings by the Seine, and we’ll see you for the next OBO. Geoff Lemon out, thanks for your company.
Updated
Heather Knight is upbeat: “We bowled a bit too short and let them get away to a good start. We pulled it back in the middle overs, some of the girls bowled brilliantly. We backed ourselves to chase that score, unfortunately we lost too many wickets early.”
“Throughout most of the innings I thought we were definitely in the game. Fran was brilliant, I’m really pleased for her and how she played. 80-odd off the last 10 was similar to what India got. It was an outstanding match, India bowled well and took the game away from us with the bat.”
Mithali Raj is quietly delighted. “When we reached 25 overs and I realised we were halfway through, I thought we could get 250-plus. Since both the batters were middling the ball, it made sense to take the batting Powerplay early. I didn’t realise [until I batted] the wicket wasn’t going to give much assistance for the bowlers, especially the spinners. So I knew we would need to bowl well.”
The win is good, but probably the best news for India is that Smitri Mandhana says she’ll be fine. She’s named player of the match for her gorgeous innings of 90 from 72 balls, and at the presentation she says that her knee is just a bit sore but should be fine, and she expects to play the next game with a bit of treatment in between.
In other news, New Zealand beat Sri Lanka easily, with a 106 not out to Suzie Bates, 78 not out to Amy Satterthwaite, and 5 for 35 to Holly Huddleston. Obviously it’s now New Zealand and India at the top of the World Cup table, with the other four teams yet to play. Pakistan plays South Africa tomorrow, and Australia-West Indies will rematch their World T20 final on Monday - you can get our OBO of that here.
You can also sign up for The Recap to get the best of all Guardian Sport’s coverage in a handy digest. Like one of those weird biscuits compulsory in Britain. There’s chocolate on this one as well.
Updated
India win by 35 runs
47.3 overs: England 246-10 (Hartley 1) It all ends with Anya Shrubsole determined to give everyone catching practice. First she hits a very high off drive that is dropped at long off - through the hands and bouncing off the sternum. Then Jenny Gunn’s dad adds insult to injury with a casual one-handed take while holding a pint, after Shrubsole puts her next ball into the crowd. From the third of the over, she tries to go the same route, and this time Veda Krishnamurthy is sprinting in from midwicket, subbing for Smitri Mandhana, and takes a brilliant catch diving and tumbling forward.
Updated
47th over: England 238-9 (Shrubsole 3, Hartley 1) Yadav finishes her allotted overs with 1 for 51, and has been instrumental. The Penguin Bomb may have iced this contest.
Updated
WICKET! Hazell b Yadav 4 from 8 balls
There’s the swinging, but sadly there’s no hitting. Of the bat. There is hitting of the stumps, as Hazell misses her mighty sweep and gives up her off stump, that’s how far she came across.
Updated
46th over: England 236-8 (Shrubsole 2, Hazell 4) Not enough swinging there. Deepti Sharma sneaks through her eighth over at the cost of three singles and a wide.
Updated
45th over: England 232-8 (Shrubsole 1, Hazell 2) Just net time for the tail now, I’m afraid, as Poonam Yadav gets through an over for only three runs. Needing 50 from 30 balls with two wickets in hand isn’t going to happen, unless there’s some mighty swinging for the hills.
Updated
WICKET! Gunn run out (Meshram) 9 from 10 balls
Meshram didn’t get a chance to bat earlier, but has done her part in the field. First the catch off Taylor, then this gather and return from midwicket. Gunn is slow getting to the striker’s end, and Verma breaks the stumps with Gunn short.
Updated
44th over: England 229-7 (Gunn 9, Shrubsole 0) Bisht went for seven from the over, including an excellent sweep from Gunn, but the bowler will care not a jot now that her fielding has got rid of Fran Wilson.
Updated
WICKET! Wilson run out (Bisht) 81 from 75 balls
Game over man, game over, as a space marine once said at an abandoned alien colony. It’s been a brilliant knock from Wilson, and it ends in the most unfortunate fashion: Gunn strikes a ball back down the pitch, Wilson is doing the team thing in backing up a couple of yards, and in a moment of brilliance Ekta Bisht traps the ball and flicks it backwards onto the stumps, with Wilson diving for her crease. The bat is over the line but the angle of her fall means that the shoulder is tilted, and the end of the blade is in the air. Wilson gave England hope for the second half of this chase, and still had the slight chance of getting the job done while scoring a century, but she has to depart for her highest international score, and the knowledge that she can compete at this level even when her more storied teammates cannot. She debuted in 2010, and it’s taken her until 2017 to be given a chance for her fifth ODI innings, but this is what she’s done with it. Well played.
Updated
43rd over: England 222-6 (Wilson 79, Gunn 4) Mithali Raj wanting to keep her spinners going, while Goswami and Pandey still have six possible overs to bowl between them. Yadav more than does the job, tying down Jenny Gunn for three dot balls before drawing a false shot down the ground. The only problem is that a sprawling Goswami is a bit more giraffe than cricketer in the instance, and puts it down on the slide coming round from long-off. She gets a couple of runs, but only four from the over in the end.
42nd over: England 218-6 (Wilson 78, Gunn 1) Jenny Gunn to the crease, Bisht finishes the over conceding only four. The sixth wicket down, and now England are up against it needing 64 from 48 balls. It would take a Fran Wilson century that would be remembered for decades to get this win. Which may be just what we get.
“This is such fabulous cricket that I was moved to write,” comes a missive. “Am currently visiting India where my Indian hosts had the news on. The only cricket news I heard was the rained-out ODI between Indian men and WI. What a shame when the women’s cricket is so much better! Nail-biting stuff.”
Change takes a while, Shruti. The level of excitement and coverage around this World Cup versus four years ago shows we’re making progress.
Updated
WICKET! Brunt run out (Sharma) 24 from 24 balls
Moments like this take a bit of magic, and that’s what Deepti Sharma has provided. She’s had that knack in her short career. Here, Brunt slashes a good cut shot away and sets off for a run. Sharma is around briskly at backward point and picks up clean. With little time and a fair bit of distance, Sharma fires down the stumps at the non-striker’s end with a direct hit. Brunt is trying to dive, tangled, but well short of her ground in any case. She crashes into the pitch with her shoulder, tumbling over and coming up covering in dirt and dust. The umpire doesn’t need a replay, his finger is skyward, and so is the elation of Deepti Sharma.
Updated
41st over: England 214-5 (Wilson 76, Brunt 23) Raj seems to have realised that shifting from India’s spin strategy was a mistake. She wants to revert to it here with Poonam Yadav, and hope to regain some measure of that earlier control. The runs still come but at least the boundaries dry up for India’s captain. Still, with a score from every ball, including a brace from Brunt’s square drive, plus a wide, and you have eight from the over. It sounds silly but it feels like the momentum is with England now. If India can grab one wicket that will surely change. But as long as they don’t...
40th over: England 206-5 (Wilson 74, Brunt 18) Pandey on for more seam bowling. She’s delivering to Brunt, who is driving through cover for four! She’s a fair striker of the ball, the Barnsley Express, and she gets every bit of that one. Shorter length next ball, but wide, and Brunt gets four off the edge! Third man came up inside the circle for that ball, and the striker edged straight through that region. The accidental Powerplay working wonders for England. Brunt taps a run into the covers, bringing Wilson on strike. Now or never, says Wilson, who premeditates a charge, bashing the ball over midwicket for four! One bounce into the fence. Then the last of the over she goes straight, this time past the bowler, for four more. Suddenly 17 off the over, and the equation is 76 from the final 10. They could.
39th over: England 189-5 (Wilson 66, Brunt 9) Goes again! Same spot on the fence for Fran Wilson, from the very different bowling of Ekta Bisht. But there’s the length, and Wilson can go cross-bat in a kind of slog-sweep, crashing it between two boundary riders once again. This is maturing into one hell of a hand from Wilson. Which is exactly why 50-over cricket can be so compelling. Three singles add to that boundary. They need 93 from 66. Could they?
38th over: England 182-5 (Wilson 61, Brunt 7) One of the issues with bringing back pace is that it gives the batting side something to work with. The principle applies here, as Goswami keeps targeting the pads with her yorker, keeps nailing it, but keeps giving up runs or leg byes every time after the ball rebounds away. Runs, leg byes, it makes no difference in the end. The pattern breaks on the last ball, as Goswami bowls length, Wilson goes back as far as she can, and nails a pull shot. There are sweepers out on the leg side, but it splits them into the square leg fence. Another 10-run over from Goswami.
Here’s the presentation I mentioned earlier.
🏆🏅 Members of @englandcricket's 1973 & 1993 World Cup-winning squads were honoured with commemorative medals during the #ENGvIND interval! pic.twitter.com/YaN5lPyTpG
— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) June 24, 2017
37th over: England 172-5 (Wilson 56, Brunt 4) Ekta Bisht back with her left-arm ortho, and like most of her teammates, Brunt struggles to time the spin. Gets just a single from the four balls she faces. India have kept the pressure up today, even with a few misfields.
The transformation from the World T20 is incredible. India looked way off the pace then. They're setting it now. #WWC17 #ENGvIND
— Dileep Premachandran (@SpiceBoxofEarth) June 24, 2017
That was March 2016. The batting lacked dynamism, the fielding was atrocious. Different format, but the improvement is striking. #ENGvIND
— Dileep Premachandran (@SpiceBoxofEarth) June 24, 2017
Half century! Wilson 53 from 57 balls
36th over: England 169-5 (Wilson 54, Brunt 3) She should be applauded for this innings. No one else has looked remotely at home against this bowling on this surface, but Wilson has come in with good intent and rather breezed her way to fifty. I say breezed, but’s been very hard work at the same time. England have to take the Powerplay now, as it’s the 35th over, so India can only have three in the deep. In the butterfly-flapping-wings chain of cause and effect, this means that Goswami comes on to bowl, which means there’s more pace, which means Wilson can pull out the ramp shot and have enough assistance to time it beautifully to the rope. That’s for her milestone, though there are a couple of less glorious shots as Goswami gets edges into the pad and tries out a few practice appeals. A tidy 10 from the over, leaving England 113 to get from 84.
Updated
35th over: England 159-5 (Wilson 48, Brunt 1) I tell you what - it doesn’t matter how many wickets they take, Wilson just keeps scoring. And she’s doing it all with the reverse sweep. I’d love to see a wagon wheel for her innings, and I’d love to see one that identified the type of shot as well. As soon as she gets strike from Brunt in this over, she reverses twice more for two each time. Closing on her first international fifty, well past her previous ODI high of 30.
Updated
WICKET! Wyatt c & b Sharma 9 from 9 balls
It was sweet but it was short. The walk-on role for Wyatt becomes a walk-off, as Deepti Sharma holds one back, Wyatt advances to drive, but is early on the shot and pops it straight back to the bowler. Sharma throws the ball up with a roar, and why not. It’ll take a Katharine Brunt biff miracle for England from here.
34th over: England 152-4 (Wilson 44, Wyatt 7) Wilson likes the boundary and matches it, finally nailing one of her reverse sweeps. Harmanpreet the bowler comes back next ball, sneaking one through the defences and into the pad. India review the not-out call, but the delivery would have been going down leg side.
33rd over: England 146-4 (Wilson 39, Wyatt 6) Danni Wyatt joins Wilson in the middle, she’s another relatively diminutive player but she has a deceptive amount of power. Mostly it’s generating through good timing, which she now employs with a liberal dose of bottom hand to slam the last ball of Deepti Sharma’s over into the gap at deep midwicket, beating the two outriders.
32nd over: England 139-4 (Wilson 37, Wyatt 1) Wilson nearly does herself in again with a shot just over mid-off, but survives once more. It’s been a mixture of bolshie batting and good fortune, but it’s been highly entertaining. Fakhar Zaman played a similar style of knock in the Champs Trophy final. England still need 143 from 108 balls.
WICKET! Knight run out (Harmanpreet) 46 from 69 balls
That door, so tantalisingly held open, blows shut. The summer breeze that so briefly wafted through it falls to nothing. The flush of health fades to marble pallor. Knight tucks the ball into the on side, decides on a sprinted single, and is thwarted by Harmanpreet Kaur’s recovering from her bowling stride to rush over, collect the missile and direct it into the non-striker’s stumps directly after a spin. England not the only team that can call on the ballet.
Updated
31st over: England 134-3 (Knight 46, Wilson 33) Another near stumping, and again Deepti Sharma is denied. This time by Wilson’s balletic abilities. She’s drawn out of her crease, misses the attempted push, but somehow does a complete set of splits, and even in that most uncomfortable of poses, manages to contort the toe of her cricket boot behind the batting crease. I’m feeling ginger even watching that. Somehow recovers enough to reverse another single next ball, and they end up with five from the over. That was bigger than Ben Hernia.
30th over: England 129-3 (Knight 43, Wilson 31) Well. Knight looks at me. She looks at John Price. She looks at the kids playing cricket behind the press box, and she looks at Fran Wilson’s score. She says, “Sod all of you. I’m England captain.” Having already had a very good look at Poonam Yadav’s penguin bombs, she has devised a plan. Down the wicket - free at last, free at last. Gets to the pitch and lifts it over cover for six. Not a huge one, it just carries the rope. So she decides she can do one better. Down again two balls later. Huge, that time. The crunch of the impact was palpable. The ball sails into the seats, or the lack of seats. Suddenly 15 from the over, the run rate lifts, the skipper’s strike rate attains the first ruddy gleams of health, and the required rate hovers at the threshold of unattainability and, for the first time today, glances back.
29th over: England 114-3 (Knight 29, Wilson 30) Wilson growing in stature: after a few more singles are added, she comes down to Deepti Sharma and lofts her straight. It gets stopped down at long on, but a couple of runs result. Good intent. And she goes past her captain’s score.
This message in from Vish about the crowd at the ground: “Just had official word that the crowd is 2,343. Disappointing considered yesterday they projected total was 3,000-plus. There are a few empty seats though a lot of people milling around. This ground is unusual in that some of the best vantage points – for example, at mid on and mid off for the bowlers coming in from the City End – don’t have seats. Throughout the day, a few people have congregated in those areas. There are quite a few kids playing behind the press box. Don’t think they fancy England to get these runs...”
28th over: England 109-3 (Knight 27, Wilson 27) Of course, as I type about the indestructible spin strategy, India brings on pace. Pandey is back, and nearly gets Wilson second ball. A short one, a hoick across the line, and it lands in front of the deep square leg catcher running in. The batting pair go back to nipping and tucking, a glide here and a flick there. Six from the over.
27th over: England 103-3 (Knight 25, Wilson 23) Another reverse from Wilson, this time getting just the single from Kaur. It starts a run of five singles from the over, with Knight finally getting a couple away to the leg side. John Price is as puzzled as me: “23 of 53 balls, rate 43.39. What is the point? Any ideas?” I think it’s just good bowling. India found a strategy and stuck to it. At least England’s hundred is up.
26th over: England 98-3 (Knight 23, Wilson 20) Fran Wilson, inexperienced and having only just pushed her way back into the side, is having to take responsibility. She’s doing everything she can to get the scoring going, including more reverse sweeps and a clumping convention sweep. A couple of twos are the result, which added to some singles, sees seven come from the Bisht over. England need all that and then some. Wilson has nearly caught Knight.
25th over: England 91-3 (Knight 22, Wilson 14) It’s not clear here whether Knight is trying to play a supposed captain’s innings, taking responsibility, or whether she just can’t find a way against this bowling. She’s 22 from 52 balls at the moment, and is again stranded by Kaur after Wilson takes an early single. She’s defending, she’s missing, she’s hitting straight to the field.
Can we use this as a name for Poonam Yadav’s deliveries?
Penguin Bomb: A Flat Origami Penguin That Assembles Itself When Dropped on a Hard Surface. https://t.co/X3xvxEPxZW pic.twitter.com/0o90yR6Age
— Cliff Pickover (@pickover) June 24, 2017
24th over: England 90-3 (Knight 22, Wilson 13) I wonder if anyone has told England that collecting four an over won’t do when your required rate is more than 7.5. Ekta Bisht the bowler, as India rotate their spin options like a yum cha lazy susan.
23rd over: England 86-3 (Knight 21, Wilson 10) Four singles again as Harmanpreet comes back on, but after all of that there should have been a run out. This time the throw goes to the wrong end. Wilson has had her share of fortune today.
Updated
22nd over: England 82-3 (Knight 19, Wilson 8) Deepti Sharma could have had her second, but Verma behind the stumps misses a sharply turning delivery as Knight gives the charge. Four singles collected after being spared.
21st over: England 78-3 (Knight 17, Wilson 6) They cannot do anything with Poonam Yadav. I’m not even trying to make jokes here, but she’s literally tossing the ball up twice her own height at stages, more flight than I’ve seen since the Scottish off-spinner Majid Haq. Three singles at this stage of an innings in a run chase this large... it’s not like the batsmen aren’t trying to score. But they’re in slow motion, waiting for the ball to arrive, then trying to force it away.
“What’s the attendance like there?” writes Sam Huscroft. “I’m at Bristol for the NZ v Sri Lanka match and ashamed to say the stewards may be outnumbering the crowd...”
Perhaps no surprise for a lower-profile neutral game. But our man Vithushan Ehantharajah says the Derby crowd is decent. Some of the Ashes games in 2015 were selling out, so I’d imagine England matches will get a good turnout. Although if they lose here it might send tremors through the cricketing establishment.
20th over: England 75-3 (Knight 15, Wilson 5) Five runs from Deepti Sharma’s next over, with Wilson manufacturing a reverse sweep for a couple. India will take that, with the required rate touching seven per over.
19th over: England 70-3 (Knight 13, Wilson 2) This is expert bowling from Poonam Yadav. Knight can’t get her away, so Yadav keeps slowing the ball up, tossing it high, giving it revs. It turns once it pitches, but it also arrives so slowly, and lands on such a good length, that Knight doesn’t know how to get it going. There’s no pace to work with. After five balls of thrashing around in molasses, Knight loses her cool and takes off on what I like to call a Morse Code run - dot, dot, dash. Wilson should have been run out, but backward point slipped as she threw, and Wilson just scrapes through with the dive.
Updated
18th over: England 69-3 (Knight 12, Wilson 2) Fran Wilson is the next in. She chops a couple of runs away to backward point, woodcutter style, and that’s the only score from the over.
WICKET! Sciver c Verma b Sharma 18 from 22 balls
Gone! Deepti Sharma’s first ball in a World Cup, and the 19-year-old has got the key England wicket. The player with most gears, with the most damaging shots, is gone thanks to the first DRS review in a Women’s World Cup. It was innocuous enough, a sweep shot, a bit of glove, a not out. But it went down leg, and the umpire didn’t call it wide I don’t think. So what was going on there? After a long chat, Raj goes for the review, and the snickometer sound technology finds a little nick of bat on ball. Deepti Sharma has generated a lot of talk for her batting and her bowling, and here the teenage all-round prodigy has an impact first ball that she will remember for a long, long time. It almost feels like fate.
Updated
17th over: England 67-2 (Knight 12, Sciver 18) Harmanpreet Kaur comes on to send down her mixed lollies, and finally Sciver gets a shot away in anger. A sweep shot nailed into the fence. A couple of singles thrown into the lolly bag as well. Less sweet is that Mandhana is leaving the boundary side, limping slightly.
Updated
16th over: England 61-2 (Knight 11, Sciver 13) There’s a mid-over delay in which drinks are taken, because Smitri Mandhana is worrying about her knee out on the boundary line. She had a reconstruction on her left peg during the WBBL, after an injury playing for Brisbane Heat. Somehow she made it back in time for this game, and showed us what she can with that brilliant 90 to kick off India’s campaign in style. It would be a crying shame if that were to be her last contribution to the tournament. She jars her knee here making a tumbling save in the deep, and is getting some treatment on the sidelines. It looks like discomfort and concern rather than a full injury, but we’ll see what transpires. Finally the over resumes, and Poonam goes for seven, a better effort for England as they start to pick up some twos.
15th over: England 54-2 (Knight 9, Sciver 8) Double spin, with Bisht on from the other end. She bowls a tidy one for three singles, and England’s fifty is up but the run rate keeps on slipping behind.
Updated
14th over: England 51-2 (Knight 7, Sciver 7) Poonam Yadav putting the pressure on, five more deliveries landing just right, two singles coming from them. Sciver lifts the pressure with a boundary from the last of the over, but it necessitates coming right across her stumps to sweep, thus opening up all three poles had she got the shot wrong. As it was, she gets just enough on it to turn it past her leg stump.
13th over: England 45-2 (Knight 6, Sciver 2) Pandey turns the screw until the timber squeaks. A single from the over, Sciver’s leg glance for one the only score. England going at under 3.5 an over when they need 6.5.
12th over: England 44-2 (Knight 6, Sciver 1) Poonam Yadav is on, the Muggsy Bogues of Indian cricket. Tiny of stature, but tosses up highly deceptive leg-breaks that dip with venom. We watched her bowl a lot in Australia a couple of seasons ago and she was almost impossible to hit away. She starts with that flight, and five balls are bang on. One is short and pulled. Two singles from the over. Huge amount of England’s hope rests with Sciver, so she has to play herself in.
11th over: England 42-2 (Knight 5, Sciver 0) Two singles and the wicket from Pandey’s over, she has 2-11 from 24 balls.
WICKET! Taylor c Meshram b Pandey 22 (31 balls)
That completes the set! While the preoccupation is with the dangerous Goswami, both openers fall to Pandey at the other end. Team bowling. This time it was just a question of timing - Pandey ran her fingers back down the ball, Taylor was a bit early on the shot, and as she tried to loft straight against what looked an inviting length, the bat twisted in her hands in the ball lofted to mid-on. Mona Meshram was able to move around to her right and take the ball almost behind her.
Updated
10th over: England 40-1 (Taylor 21, Knight 4) We’re seeing Sarah Taylor apply the WD40 to the rust at the start of this innings, as one of the smoothest ODI operators with the bat tries to get going. Starts this Goswami over with an inelegant short-arm wallop over midwicket that again has potential catchers yelling in expectation, but again goes groundward without interventions. Taylor looks better with a cover drive next ball, then Knight shows her how it’s done with a melted-butter cut shot from the last. Now that was Goswami’s first culpable boundary - she let it get too wide, and she throws her head back in frustration at herself on seeing the ball beat backward point.
“Hi Geoff,” writes Romeo. “You can do a ç via Alt+ 135 and, if you should ever need an upper-case job, it’s Alt+ 128.”
Merçi bien.
9th over: England 33-1 (Taylor 18, Knight 0) It’s a wicket maiden for Shikha Pandey, as the England captain Heather Knight comes to the crease.
WICKET! Beaumont c Mandhana b Pandey 14
First one goes! First ball of Pandey’s over, it’s again in the channel outside off, this time Beaumont gave herself room, backed away, dropped her weight and tried to flog the ball over cover on bended knee. High degree of difficulty there, and the Russian judge raises one finger in dismissal as the thick edge flies directly to slip.
Updated
8th over: England 33-0 (Beaumont 14, Taylor 18) Goswami in the channel, and has Taylor nearly caught off the inside edge as one decks against a big drive. A couple of balls later, she just gets enough on a checked drive that lobs over mid-on as the fielder runs back. There’s enough on it to reach the fence. Goswami hasn’t conceded a bad boundary yet.
Updated
7th over: England 29-0 (Beaumont 14, Taylor 14) Pandey is tidy again, three singles as both openers find the field whenever they attempt something more. Pandey is rocking the absorbent headband while bowling. Headpandey? It’s a brilliant look. India bringing real style in every department. For the boss-ness of their batting innings earlier, it’s this.
When people ask me why I love Mithali Raj so much. This is her, waiting to bat in India's World Cup opener against England. #legend! pic.twitter.com/jBA3Be3jwf
— Junia Stainbank (@mjstainbank) June 24, 2017
6th over: England 26-0 (Beaumont 13, Taylor 12) Right then, Goswami isn’t made of glass after all, she just wants to change ends. Senior bowler wants, senior bowler gets. Attacking the stumps again, and Beaumont still isn’t timing her shots, this time driving into her own pad before Goswami cuts her in half with a brilliant last ball, leaping off a length and cutting in, so nearly taking the woodwork. India really should have had at least one wicket, in a fairer world, but the luck with England so far. Three singles from the over.
5th over: England 23-0 (Beaumont 12, Taylor 10) Shikha Pandey, the strongly built pacer with a blazing bowling average of 18, replaces Goswami already. Seems to be looking for some outswing as she channels away outside the off stump, and there is perhaps a touch of movement. A very harsh wide is called for one that Taylor left just because she didn’t fancy it. Punishment for good bowling. It’s so nearly only the wide and a Taylor single from the over, but a sprawling attempted stop at cover can’t quite do the job, and Beaumont’s drive gets through by the finest of margins.
Updated
4th over: England 17-0 (Beaumont 8, Taylor 9) Bisht to Beaumont, which is the pairing India wants. This over the opener is much more circumspect, defending for the most part except for one sweep shot. It should be a single, but there’s a bad dive at deep backward square and the ball gets through.
3rd over: England 13-0 (Beaumont 4, Taylor 9) Two boundaries from the over, but it wasn’t much of a win for the batsman. Taylor just gets some glove on a glance to fine leg, then gets a genuine nick wide of slip. Goswami’s pace was her own enemy in that instance. Not happy.
2nd over: England 5-0 (Beaumont 4, Taylor 1) Ekta Bisht to start from the other end, she bowls low-slung left-arm spin, and is extremely effective as a dot-baller. Beaumont is not handling her well. First one angled in at leg stump turns and... did that clip the pad and then get past off stump? Either that or it was all turn. Either way, it nearly bowls her, and there could have been a stumping on as well if the keeper had magic hands and extender-arms. Beaumont goes for a sweep to follow up and is dropped. A harsh one to describe as such, top edge and Deepti Sharma made great ground sprinting backwards from slip, put in the full dive, and just got fingertips to it. I wonder if short fine leg put her off, or perhaps should have been the one sprinting in? Taylor gets a low-profile single driving to long on, then Beaumont chips another awkward and ugly shot in the air towards midwicket, but it again evades a catching hand. Goodness me.
Updated
1st over: England 1-0 (Beaumont 1, Taylor 0) It’s the power couple to open the innings, with the big hitter Tammy Beaumont joined by wicketkeeper Sarah Taylor, the latter returning to international cricket from a restorative break. Jhulan Goswami, the highest wicket-taker in women’s ODIs, will open proceedings. She aims full, fast, at the pads. A bit of swing too. Very little can come of that kind of bowling, there’s only a single via an edge to third man.
Well, what a batting performance from India. They haven’t been in great touch in their warm-up games, but captain Mithali Raj said that didn’t really matter, and that they would bring their best once the tournament began. So it has proved, with two near-centuries of contrasting brilliance from the openers Mandhana and Raut. Harmanpreet finished off with the big hitting we know she can bring, and the match also marked seven half-centuries in a row for Raj, four of them unbeaten. 70*, 64, 73*, 51*, 54, 62*, 71.
Mithali Raj, until she was dismissed from the last ball, averaged more than Meg Lanning in ODI cricket. Their respective marks are now 52.25 and 52.37. It’s an average-off. But which one can’t turn left?
Out in the middle, a lovely touch here as Women’s World Cup medals are awarded to some of the England winners from the 1973 and 1993 teams. Those players plied their trade in an era before bling was handed out to champions, so they’re being recognised now. The wind is blowing the wrong way for the PA, and of course not all the players can be here - the captain of that 1973 side was Rachael Heyhoe Flint, who passed away recently.
But I can gather that among those able to make the journey to Derby today are Mary Evans, Enid Bakewell, and Chris Watmough. From the 1993 side I can spot Jo Chamberlain, Carole Hodges, Debra Maybury, Helen Plimmer, Gill Smith, Clare Taylor, and Wendy Watson. There are a few others - if anyone can help me fill in the gaps, I’d be much obliged.
Thank you, Vithushan. I’m never sure, when writing the OBO, how much to divulge on a personal level. Do we break the fourth wall? Do we rap our Kevin Spacey knuckles on the table? We are a community here, we’re all friends in a way. But is it self-indulgent to insert the reality of the writer’s existence into the narrative? Or should it all be about Jenny Gunn?
Perhaps it should. I’ll only say that Vish and I shared a delightful midweek jaunt to Paris in the last few days, before the delights of Derby proved too strong a lure. For those who’ve spent the last few hours with him on the blog, it will not surprise you to learn that he’s a capable and considerate travel companion with a reasonable facility en Francais. If that helps you draw a more textured portrait of what life is like on this side of the OBO, then divulging it is worthwhile.
Of course, it is a mere bagatelle in the face of this tournament. And what we have here, dear readers, is most certainly a match.
ENGLAND REQUIRE 282 TO WIN
50th over: India 281-3 (Kaur 24) Solid ending for India, who finish on their highest World Cup score. Raj holes out off the final ball – caught in the deep by Brunt off Knight, but not before hitting a gorgeous straight drive for her eighth four. Pure class from top to middle for India. England need to dig seriously deep. They’re not the most convincing chasers but the deck is good and the outfield quick. That’s all from me. I’m off for some food. I’m leaving you in the very capable (sizeable) hands of Geoff Lemon.
Updated
49th over: India 274-2 (Raj 66, Kaur 22) Hmmmm... maybe silver medal for shot of the day is right here: Hazell tonked high and true over midwicket. One over to go and the skipper is going to bowl it...
Updated
48th over: India 262-2 (Raj 62, Kaur 14) Shot of the day from Kaur, without a doubt. Knight tempts her down the track, she obliges, cocking the wrists as she strides down and unleashes them hard and true down the ground for her first boundary.
47th over: India 253-2 (Raj 58, Kaur 9) England’s highest ever successful chase in any ODI is 243. A poor over from Hazell – a four through midwicket and five wides leak 12 runs when her previous eight only brought 27.
46th over: India 241-2 (Raj 52, Kaur 8) No boundaries from that over – just six from it as Gunn settles for yorkers – but India now have their highest score against England in a World Cup match.
Updated
45th over: India 235-2 (Raj 50, Kaur 4) Another ODI fifty for Raj with another mow through long on. A record breaking one. Two records, to be exact. Take it away, Francis Kelly:
Mithali Raj makes ODI history (x2). Now has the most ODI half-centuries (47) and longest consecutive run of 50s (7) #WWC17
— Francis Kelly (@_Franciskelly) June 24, 2017
44th over: India 229-2 (Raj 45, Kaur 3) That same variation from Gunn isn’t coming out well. A waist-high full toss is called but luckily the free hit only costs a run. Six from the over.
43rd over: India 223-2 (Raj 43, Kaur 0) That wicket brings Harmanpreet Kaur to the crease. What a position to come in: loads on the board, seven overs left, England’s attack meek. What a player to have in, too. As clean a ball-striker as you will see in this World Cup...
WICKET! Raut c Wyatt b Hazell 86 (India 222-2)
Another fine hand ends with a refreshingly unselfish clout to square leg, where Wyatt comes in to take a solid catch. Drop three times but not four.
Updated
42nd over: India 222-1 (Raut 86, Raj 42) Jenny Gunn returns at the death – twas ever thus – but is greeted immediately by the full face of Raut’s bat and is driven for four. A few slower ball variations – seemingly easy to pick – are played away comfortably.
Mithali Raj carving boundaries in a broad-brimmed hat: one of the majestic sights of our sport. #WWC17
— Geoff Lemon Sport (@GeoffLemonSport) June 24, 2017
41st over: India 215-1 (Raut 80, Raj 41) Clobbering time. Raj heaves through midwicket but all along the carpet for her fifth boundary.
England's highest ever run chase is 243 in any women's one day international.
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) June 24, 2017
India 212/1 with 9 overs left https://t.co/6wiHNVJ4r8 pic.twitter.com/raL1g1mwEn
40th over: India 207-1 (Raut 79, Raj 34) A third drop and a third life for Punam Raut. This time Anya Shrubsole can’t get up to take a catch at mid on as she heaves across instead of straight. Hartley should have a wicket.
39th over: India 203-1 (Raut 76, Raj 33) Knight, the only wicket-taker so far, brings herself back on. Flatter deliveries all the way through bring four singles. It’s not pretty but, at this juncture, it is effective.
38th over: India 199-1 (Raut 74, Raj 31) Second MOZ of the day. Hartley does give it some air this time and Raj skips down to beat mid off and cover through the air. It brings the fifty partnership up between these two. Started slowly but have motored well with time.
37th over: India 192-1 (Raut 73, Raj 25) Short, wide and cut easily by Raj for four. There has been a lot of that from Brunt today. She’s really not hit her straps. The over ends with a glorious thump on the up through midwicket from Raut.
36th over: India 183-1 (Raut 69, Raj 20) Some side-arm variations from Hartley, who isn’t the tallest, so can stop batsmen getting under her and lofting. That being said, Raut and Raj manage to get seven runs on foot.
Unlock #WWC17 captain emojis as part of our unprecedented coverage of the women's game with @TwitterSports!
— ICC (@ICC) June 24, 2017
More ➡ https://t.co/zomBtgHTbf pic.twitter.com/MuDENmsF0u
35th over: India 176-1 (Raut 65, Raj 17) Raut tags in Raj for Brunt round two. Raj immediately tries to return the strike, but England are quick on this. Brunt goes for a bouncer, Raj pulls with her eyes shut and just manages to skew it away, beyond the grasp of Sarah Taylor down the leg side. Four. Sharp singles in there, too.
34th over: India 169-1 (Raut 64, Raj 12) Another good over from Hartley. She’s only gone for one boundary in her four overs so far. Sharp cricketer.
Evie taking it all in, her first international game and her first woman's game and loving it! #WCC17 pic.twitter.com/A9bWw1dSIa
— Huw Lloyd (@Lloydzilla) June 24, 2017
Maybe I’m getting old, that that sight up there is lovely.
33rd over: India 165-1 (Raut 62, Raj 10) Good battle, this. Raut’s trying to ramp Brunt and Brunt’s trying to take Raut’s head of. Something’s got to give (great film – Keanu’s finest). Brunt takes this round. Maiden. The second of the innings. “Mel ‘MJ’ Jones is as good at jinxing as Will Macpherson,” writes Romeo. “Shouldn’t be allowed.” I’ve been calling for Will to be banned for a while now. I’ll start a petition at the break.
32nd over: India 165-1 (Raut 62, Raj 10) Mithali in the game with her first boundary. Classy affair. Hartley turns one away, so Raj goes inside-out over extra cover.
First game back after a 6 month injury layoff, and it's like she was never gone. @mandhana_smriti is a superstar! #BackfootBallerina #wwc17
— Ananya Upendran (@a_upendran11) June 24, 2017
31st over: India 159-1 (Raut 60, Raj 5) Raut clears the ropes for the first time. Clobbered high over the leg side, just beyond the dive of Tammy Beaumont, patrolling the boundary. And it’s against Brunt. Naturally the next one is sharp, but on the legs. Raut escapes with a single to square leg.
Updated
30th over: India 150-1 (Raut 53, Raj 4) Quality from Hartley, who squares up Raut with one that just grips. A bit fuller and she’s in business.
In her previous 15 ODI innings Mithali Raj has scored 833 runs at 104.12 #WWC17
— hypocaust (@_hypocaust) June 24, 2017
29th over: India 148-1 (Raut 52, Raj 3) Power Play done – 33 for 1 for India, with a lot of that damage coming in the first over it was taken – and Katherine Brunt returns from the city end. A loose ball on the toes, flicked away for one, is the only ropey delivery of the lot.
Mithali Raj is in. Stop all other activities and watch pure liquid batting.
— Jarrod Kimber (@ajarrodkimber) June 24, 2017
28th over: India 146-1 (Raut 51, Raj 2) Hmmm so this is where England can win back a fair bit of ground. Raj isn’t the quickest starter – she dots up the first ball balls from Hazell – and Raut is, seemingly, batting by numbers a bit. Burgle a few overs and watch the Indians get tetchy, I say...
PUNAM RAUT REACHES HER FIFTY!
27th over: India 145-1 (Raut 51, Raj 1) Ah well, the over started well enough. A delightful skip and punch over cover brought Punam Raut to her fifty, off 86 balls. The last ball saw Mandhana’s stay come to an end. Out walks Mithali Raj to begin her fifth World Cup campaign...
WICKET! Mandhana c Hazell b Knight 90 (India 144-1)
Ah boo... an excellent innings comes to an end. A vital breakthrough for England. Knights tempts a drive – she hasn’t needed much encouragement to be fair – and Mandhana flays it to midwicket.
Updated
26th over: India 139-0 (Raut 46, Mandhana 90) Jenny Gunn replaces Shrubsole and England have dropped a fielder back down the ground. As a result, a lofted strike from Mandhana is mopped up by long off. Four singles from the over. Excellent advice and use of “moz”, this:
I don't want to moz her but all @BCCI cricket fans need to get to a TV now for what is looking like an amazing WC ton for Mandhana. #WWC17
— Mel 'MJ' Jones (@meljones_33) June 24, 2017
25th over: India 135-0 (Raut 44, Mandhana 88) Mandhana catches her breath while Raut takes all six from Knight, knowking a two but nothing else.
Updated
24th over: India 133-0 (Raut 42, Mandhana 88)
Great start by @BCCIWomen, so confident they've called the power play 113-0. #WWC17
— Mel 'MJ' Jones (@meljones_33) June 24, 2017
Now, I realise not everyone is aware of this – a few in the press box had to check – but the batting side in women’s ODI cricket still has that five-over Power Play which they can call any time between the 10th and the 35th over. India have gone for it and England can only have three fielders outside the ring. As a result, Shrubsole comes back into the attack for Hartley and, my word, does Mandhana like that. First ball, she clobbers over midwicket (again) for six. She then skips down and swings her arms through the line for four down the ground before finishing with a swivel pull behind square leg. In among that, Raut got down on one knee and ramped one fine through third man. Just some really quality swording.
Updated
23rd over: India 113-0 (Raut 37, Mandhana 73) England captain Heather Knight has had enough. On she comes for a twirl. Former New Zealand seamer Iain O’Brien calls her action “the Wonky Donkey”: a couple of skips, a flail of arms and a lean across to the off side when she delivers. Gets away with a full toss first up. Five from the over.
22nd over: India 108-0 (Raut 36, Mandhana 69) We’ve got our wish. On comes the Lancashire and Surrey Stars left-arm spinner. The first ball is woeful, though – a half-tracker that is bunted away for a single. Raut nearly finds a boundary down at square leg but cat-like reflexes from the fielder in the deep saves two runs. How’s that for a segue?
England to be penalised for using a 12th fielder? 🤔😺#ENGvIND #WWC17 pic.twitter.com/LXdqu8P0qQ
— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) June 24, 2017
Updated
21st over: India 101-0 (Raut 33, Mandhana 65) The century opening stand brought up off 127 balls (three wides in there, too). Give us some Alex Hartley. Above the eye-line, turning into the leftie. Get Mandhana driving. Scoot one through the gate.
The more India go on like this, the more it looks like a bad decision to field first. England aren't good at chasing. #WWC17
— Raf Nicholson (@RafNicholson) June 24, 2017
20th over: India 97-0 (Raut 31, Mandhana 63) An excellently pinched single to cover, Artful Dodger stuff, is followed by a deft touch from Mandhana which uses what pace there is from a relatively straight Gunn delivery to find four inside fine leg.
Updated
19th over: India 90-0 (Raut 29, Mandhana 58)
@SmritiMandhana what a WC debut !! Superb innings !! #WWC17 #IndvsEng
— Brahmananda Singha (@heyBrahma) June 24, 2017
What Brahma said. Not everyone’s happy with the start, mind. Some criticism of Raut on social media for playing out too many dots. Looks like she is trying to address that, shuffling across to find space in the leg side for a tip and run. Finds one of the final ball through the covers, too.
18th over: India 86-0 (Raut 27, Mandhana 56) Maybe drinks will bring some fresh ideas. Come to think of it, Fresh Ideas is a great brand name for cordial. England look dishevelled. India imperious.
17th over: India 83-0 (Raut 26, Mandhana 54) Just four from the Hazell over, but no real penetration. They are simply not going to tie these two down. Bung a slip in? Catching cover? Easy game from here, but it’s all a bit flat out in the middle.
Updated
SMRITI MANDHANA BRINGS UP HER 6TH ODI FIFTY
16th over: India 79-0 (Raut 24, Mandhana 52) And it’s a fifty in her first World Cup match. She’s looked class and got there in some style: charging and nailing Gunn over extra cover for her eighth four. Bad to worse for England moments before as Raut was “dropped” for a second time. I say “dropped”, it was a high chance away to Tammy Beaumont at mid off who, despite having time, was unable to track the ball well enough to lay a hand on it.
Updated
15th over: India 71-0 (Raut 21, Mandhana 47) Another good over, just one from it. We’ve had just 12 from the last five overs...
14th over: India 70-0 (Raut 21, Mandhana 46) Quality over from Gunn. Pace off the ball, around the wicket to the leftie to offer no width. Nous. Smarts. Bhaskar Agrawal emails in: “O ho ho! Tuned into TV to check what the excitement was about Mandhana’s drives and got to see three gorgeous off side strokes immediately. Worth all the build up I say!” She’s good. REAL good.
13th over: India 69-0 (Raut 21, Mandhana 45) A CHANCE! But one not taken... Hazell tempts Raut into a loose flick to midwicket. Nat Sciver, lurking, goes to her left, sticks out a paw – doesn’t dive – and ends up getting fingertips to the ball. Should have taken that, for mine. Raut was on 20, India would have been 67-1.
Updated
12th over: India 66-0 (Raut 20, Mandhana 43) Jenny Gunn into the attack. England’s leading ODI wicket-taker and the woman relied upon to hold-up an end, prise a wicket or kill the run rate. She’ll need to be wearing all three hats today. Streaky edge down to third man makes it three singles from the over.
I spent an hour in her company a few weeks back. She was great value:
11th over: India 63-0 (Raut 19, Mandhana 41) Change of pace as Danielle Hazell comes into the attack. Looks like there’s a bit of turn out there. Three runs off the bat and a wide down the legside, a relatively good over given the circumstances. 43 dot balls in the opening 10 overs by the way. Remarkable.
This is India's first 50+ ODI opening stand vs England since 24 Feb 2010. Their only previous 50+ stand vs ENG in ENG was in 1999. #WWC17
— hypocaust (@_hypocaust) June 24, 2017
10th over: India 59-0 (Raut 17, Mandhana 40) “I’ve not seen us bowl this badly for a long time,” says Charlotte Edwards on TV. Soon the pictures change to India captain Mithali Raj, sat in a plastic chair on the boundary’s edge reading a book. Raut square drives Sciver for four. Raj turns to the next page. Nothing but class from India out there. Grim opening from England.
9th over: India 53-0 (Raut 11, Mandhana 40) Ladies and gentlegents, we have our first single of the match. It took 53 balls to come – a push to extra cover – and was greeted by rapturous applause from this KNOWLEDGEABLE DERBY CROWDTM . Shrubsole, bowling her first delivery to the left-hander, is picked off through square leg. “Good ball to a right-hander” comes the cry from your third XI wicketkeeper. Fifty up.
8th over: India 48-0 (Raut 10, Mandhana 36) Hold the phone - we’ve got a maiden. And it’s Mandhana who plays it out. Nat Sciver keeps her line steady with a reinforced offside field. Mandhana still drives, but straight to hands each time.
Updated
7th over: India 48-0 (Raut 10, Mandhana 36) Raut comes to the party. I mean, she arrived with Mandhana, but left for a bit to get something from the shop down the round, leaving her opening partner to it. As Shrubsole goes wicket-to-wicket, she lofts one down the ground. Not quite timed, but a decent bounce off the fairway brings four.
Updated
6th over: India 44-0 (Raut 6, Mandhana 36) Change of bowling – Nat Sciver replaces Brunt. No change in Mandhana though. She hangs back for Sciver’s first ball and works from outside off to leg for a belting six! Timed that brilliantly. Four through the same region follows a few balls later. Rah, she’s enjoying midwicket so much she might think about holidaying there.
Updated
5th over: India 32-0 (Raut 6, Mandhana 24) Gary Naylor, give him the armband. Taylor’s up, Shrubsole has Raut pinned to the crease and only one run comes from the over...
4th over: India 31-0 (Mandhana 24, Raut 6) Agree with Gary’s Tweet, even more so after this over. 16 from it! All classy. Let’s talk about the second one first: width from Brunt but, ooooosh, the timing and the hands on Mandhana... like blowing a kiss through backward point. The first was picked up over midwicket. The third another ease through point. The fourth and final one punched with a bit more venom through cover. Excellent start from India.
3rd over: India 15-0 (Raut 6, Mandhana 8) Raut drives through extra cover for four. It’s not that she’s threatened to do that, but she’s been camped on the front foot and, given a chance, let her hands come through the ball. Looks a great deck.
Sarah Taylor should be standing up and the field should be much closer - make playing away feel like it! @Vitu_E
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) June 24, 2017
2nd over: India 11-0 (Raut 2, Mandhana 8) Smriti Mandhana. Yes. As mentioned – better than Gower. Her first ball, delivered by Katherine Brunt, is whipped over square leg for the first four of the competition. Decent. A drive through the covers, while only bringing two, looked classy enough for some a few extra style points.
1st over: India 3-0 (Raut 2, Mandhana 0) Poonam Raut, right-handed opener, opens her wrists and guides the first ball of the 2017 World Cup behind point for two. A few Anya Shrubsole outswingers, a wide, a couple of leaves and that’s your first over folks. By the way – and cheers to Tim de Lisle for informing me – we have a Google doodle! Go out there, get into those snails and drive them into the dirt!
Updated
BREAKING: We have Seven Nation Army. The Women’s World Cup is officially declared... OPEN!
Here’s something better from Jack White before we get going.
We’ve got an opening ceremony on our hands. And, naturally, it’s a bit odd. We’ve got eight different colours on all four corners of the ground which are being waved by some kids who I assume are local and haven’t been shipped in from west Germany. Probably a nearby school.
View from the @bbctms box @DerbyshireCCC as the #WWC17 opening event begins #bbccricket pic.twitter.com/f39Q8dgU6q
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) June 24, 2017
Updated
TOSS NEWS
Overcast skies, bit of moisture in the air, in for a penny, in for a pound...
England win the toss in Derby and will bowl first. #ENGvIND #WWC17 pic.twitter.com/ZR59Lb8fjP
— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) June 24, 2017
The news is that Sarah Taylor returns to England for her first ODI since February 2016. And, it seems like she will open the batting in the absence of Lauren Winfield, thus causing little disruption to the rest of the line-up.
ENG: T Beaumont, H Knight, S Taylor, N Sciver, F Wilson, D Wyatt, K Brunt, D Hazell, J Gunn, A Shrubsole, A Hartley
IND: P Raut, S Mandhana, D Sharma, M Raj, H Kaur, M Meshram, S Pandey, J Goswami, E Bisht, S Verma, P Yadav
PREAMBLE
Morning, friends, and welcome to Derby for the Women’s World Cup opener. This is the 11th edition of a tournament that should probably drop the first “W” considering the women got there two years before the men. As India captain Mithali Raj’s smackdown of a male journalist and his hackneyed line of questioning showed, they are not just here to enjoy the experience, curtsy and indulge in any whimsy BS tossed there way. This time, more of them reckon they can win the whole thing. Even six-time champions Australia, favourites since time began, aren’t sitting comfortably. For anyone of any other persuasion, it’s a beautiful thing.
The numbers add to that sense: the prize money of $2m (£1.56m), the 139 countries and 200 territories that will be able to follow it live on television or online, respectively. All 31 matches will be broadcast live. More than three thousand are expected through the County Ground gates today.
Form since the 2013 World Cup suggests we might be watching two of the semi-finalists today:
Women's ODI W/L record in matches between the top 8 teams since the 2013 World Cup. #WWC17 pic.twitter.com/SdeRHERmyz
— hypocaust (@_hypocaust) June 23, 2017
But enough about the numbers. Meet the cast.
Both sides are packed with quality beyond their respective skippers Raj and Heather Knight, who in a different world are political behemoths setting the world on a path to so much more. Sarah Taylor, hands like silk, wrists of rubber, is back and striking them well. Allrounder Harmanpreet Kaur, superstar – the first Indian player in the WBBL or Kia Super League – is exactly they say she is. Katherine Brunt, fury for a thousand lifetimes, still bowls heat. Smriti Mandhana drives better than Gower. Oh and there’s Nat Sciver who, legend has it, once came across a loaf of bread and called for the nearest knife. The rest, as they say, is history. Toss due soon.
In the mean time, get around them and me: email vithushan.ehantharajah.casual@theguardian.com or tweet bite-sized nuggets to @Vitu_E.
Vithushan will be here soon. In the meantime, here is his preview of today’s World Cup opener. England start as favourites, but the loss of Lauren Winfield at the top of the order for this match and potentially the next against Pakistan on Tuesday, is a huge blow to England’s plans, Winfield’s career and a burgeoning opening partnership:
Given a sustained go as opener from the start of last summer against Pakistan, Winfield scored 439 runs in 10 innings that spanned tours away to West Indies and Sri Lanka.
Her absence also splits a young, dynamic opening partnership with Tammy Beaumont. The pair spent years together defacing the record books at Loughborough University and were starting to do the same at international level. In the second ODI against Pakistan last summer, they both scored maiden centuries on their way to setting a record opening stand of 235. It was also the sixth highest for any ODI wicket.
Updated
