A spirited Indian side led by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur clinched their maiden T20I series victory against England, in England, by a 3-2 margin in the five-game series. The Women in Blue were keen to carry forward the momentum as the caravan moved to the three-match ODI series from 16th July 2025 and did just that in the ODI opener. A big boost for the home side was the return of their regular skipper, Nat Sciver-Brunt.
Late flourish from Sophia Dunkley and Sophie Ecclestone helps England to 258
The Indian new-ball bowlers, led by the 21-year-old Kranti Goud in particular, gave them a dream start, removing both the English openers inside the first four overs of the innings, after the home skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt won the toss and opted to bat first in the 1st ODI at The Rose Bowl, Southampton.
Skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt joined Emma Lamb at the crease, and the duo led some sort of a recovery with a much-needed 71-run partnership for the 3rd wicket, taking them closer to the 100-run mark. Sneh Rana broke the stand, by sending Emma Lamb (39 off 50 balls) back to the pavilion in the 19th over of the innings to provide the crucial 3rd breakthrough for India.
Sneh Rana also got the big scalp of the opposition skipper, Nat Sciver-Brunt (41 off 52 balls), back to the pavilion in the 21st over of the innings to provide the much-needed 4th breakthrough for her side. Alice Davidson-Richards joined Sophia Dunkley at the crease, and the pair stitched another crucial 106-run partnership for the 5th wicket to take them past the 200-run mark. Sree Charani broke the ominous stand by sending Alice Davidson-Richards (53 off 73 balls) back to the pavilion. She completed her 2nd half-century in the ODI format before getting dismissed.
England eventually posted a competitive total of 258/6 in their quota of 50 overs, courtesy of a vital 55-run partnership for the 6th wicket between Sophie Ecclestone (23* off 19 balls) and the birthday girl Sophia Dunkley (83 off 92 balls), who now holds the record for the highest individual score by an English batter in an ODI on her birthday, surpassing Amy Jones’ knock of 80 runs against the West Indies in June 2019.
Sneh Rana (10-0-31-2), Kranti Goud (9-0-55-2), Shree Charani (10-0-46-1), and Amanjot Kaur (10-0-58-1) were impressive with the ball for India.
Deepti Sharma’s unbeaten fifty guides India over the line to give ODI series lead
The Indian openers Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana got them off to a confident start with a 48-run opening partnership, chasing a decent total of 259, at Southampton. Lauren Bell got the big scalp of Smriti Mandhana (28 off 24 balls) in the 8th over of the run chase to provide the first breakthrough for England.
Harleen Deol joined Pratika Rawal at the crease, and the pair stitched another crucial 46-run partnership for the 2nd wicket to take them closer to the 100-run mark. Sophie Ecclestone cleaned up Pratika Rawal (36 off 51 balls) to provide the 2nd breakthrough for her side in the 19th over of the run chase. The home side bounced back and picked up a couple of wickets in quick succession, including the wicket of the opposition skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (17 off 27 balls) in the 28th over of the innings, reducing them to 124/4.
Deepti Sharma partnered alongside Jemimah Rodrigues in a crucial juncture in the run chase, and the pair settled the nerves in their camp with a vital 90-run partnership for the 5th wicket, taking them past the 200-run mark. Jemimah Rodrigues (48 off 54 balls) in her attempt to further reduce the deficit, attempted a scoop, only to be surprised by the bit of an extra pace and bounce as the ball brushed her gloves on the way to the keeper Amy Jones to provide Lauren Filer with the first breakthrough in her spell, and the home side their 5th breakthrough which made things a bit more interesting in the run chase. She fell just two runs short of her well-deserved half-century.
However, Deepti Sharma stayed solid at the other end, continuing with her calm and composed innings, ensuring India got over the line with 4 wickets in hand and 10 balls to spare. Amanjot Kaur (20* off 14 balls) finished things off in style, smashing successive boundaries in the 49th over of the run chase. Deepti Sharma (62* off 64 balls) stayed unbeaten as she notched up her 14th ODI half-century.
Charlotte Dean (10-0-52-2) and Sophie Ecclestone (10-1-34-1) were the stand-out performers with the ball for England, while Lauren Bell (7-0-40-1) and Lauren Filer (9-0-52-1) played their part with the ball for their side.
Deepti Sharma was awarded the Player of the Match as she played a crucial role (10-0-58-0) with the ball, following up with an unbeaten half-century to guide India over the line as they took the ODI series lead with a comfortable victory.
