Dunkley, Filer star as England keep series alive in thriller

England overcame an astounding collapse and a rash of fielding errors to defeat India by five runs and keep their T20I series alive in a last-ball thriller at the Kia Oval.

England squandered the most promising of starts at 137 without loss in the 16th over - built on excellent half-centuries by Sophia Dunkley and Danni Wyatt-Hodge - by losing nine wickets for 31 runs in the space of 25 balls. Deepti Sharma and Arundhati Reddy claimed three wickets apiece and N. Shree Charani two.

After an 85-run opening stand between Smriti Mandhana, who scored a classy half-century, and Shafali Verma, India looked like overhauling the target with ease, especially after being gifted several lives by the home side's poor fielding. Lauren Filer bowled with searing pace, particularly in her final over - the 16th of the run-chase, in which she prised out Mandhana - and finished with 2 for 30 as England's only multiple wicket-taker. Sophie Ecclestone, Lauren Bell and Issy Wong took one each.

India needed six off the last ball of the match, bowled by Bell, but Harmanpreet Kaur picked out Ecclestone at mid-off, allowing the hosts to claw their way to a 1-2 series scoreline with two matches to play.

Dunkley's 75 off 53 balls was her first innings of note since the start of the international summer when she scored an unbeaten 81 in the first T20I against West Indies. For Wyatt-Hodge, her 66 off 42 ended a run of 17, 17, 0, 0, 0, and 1 since her previous T20I fifty, which came during the second match of the series in Australia on England's ill-fated Ashes tour.

Whether such a rousing win - under the leadership of Tammy Beaumont, who was standing in for injured captain Nat Sciver-Brunt - can turn the series around remains to be seen, especially given that England were outplayed in the first two games. But they have given themselves a chance and rekindled a series in which India will be looking to turn things back in their favour in the fourth match in Manchester on Wednesday.

With Sciver-Brunt sidelined by a groin injury, England needed a big stand from their openers and they delivered. Dunkley's shot selection was top-notch throughout and she cashed in on a second life when she was dropped on 43 to reach fifty off 35 balls. Importantly she pulled her batting partner with her as Wyatt-Hodge finally settled from a scratchy start with 11 off 15 balls at the end of the seventh over to 30 off 25 at the halfway point of the innings, then 50 off 34. Wyatt-Hodge's second six went a long way beyond the rope when she slammed a Reddy delivery back over the bowler's head, the ball dropping just shy of the first row of spectators. She raised her half-century in the next over - Sneh Rana's second - with consecutive fours, driven through the covers and flicked over midwicket.

Charani's flippant shrug and flicker of a smile said it all when she had Wong caught behind attempting to cut a wide ball outside off. England were in the midst of the most dramatic of meltdowns and Charani, the 20-year-old left-arm spinner who made her T20I debut in the first match of this series, was in the thick of it with two wickets in as many deliveries. She had just lured Paige Scholfield down the pitch, her swing in vain as Richa Ghosh whipped off the bails with the batter well out of her ground.

There was to be no hat-trick for Charani, or Deepti, who removed Ecclestone and Filer with the first and second deliveries of the final over of England's innings, which had gone from promising to pitiful at breath-taking speed. Dunkley's innings had come undone when she skied a Deepti full-toss and the bowler wheeled round to take the ball neatly over her shoulder. Alice Capsey failed to pass 5 for the third time in this series when she attempted to ramp Arundhati and was well caught by Charani at short backward square leg.

Arundhati struck twice more in the same over, the 17th, first with a slower ball which Wyatt-Hodge struck straight to Harmanpreet at deep cover to end her redemptive knock, then pinned Amy Jones lbw next ball, although it took an India review to overturn Jacqueline Wilson's decision. Beaumont needed to steady things but she missed an attempted sweep off Radha Yadav and was bowled for just 2, setting the stage for Charani to add to her leading wicket-taker's tally of eight for the series so far and match figures of 2 for 43.

India had made their share of fielding errors in this match. Charani saw two chances put down off her second over. Wyatt-Hodge was on 17 when Jemimah Rodrigues dropped a sitter at deep midwicket and she evaded the same fielder's fingertips next ball as Rodrigues leapt in vain trying to pull the ball down before it cleared the rope. Dunkley was then handed a life when she chipped to cover and Harmanpreet failed to hold on.

Then it was England's turn. Bell looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her up when she fumbled a chance right in front of a full stand at deep third, the ball dribbling into the rope for Shafali's second four in as many balls from Filer - her first scoring shots of the match. There was no consolation when Bell, standing in the same place, plucked Shafali's ramp out of the air and held on for the most spectacular of takes, but landed sprawled across the boundary, her arms and the ball well over.

Capsey shelled a chance off Harmanpreet's top-edged pull to midwicket in Filer's final over, but Filer made the crucial breakthrough with her next delivery as Mandhana picked out Ecclestone at mid-on. She didn't let up, striking Richa Ghosh on the helmet with her very next ball as Charlie Dean did well to collect at point. She briefly thought she'd put Filer on a hat-trick until replays showed no contact with the bat.

Shafali and Mandhana set India's run-chase off to an excellent start with their opening stand. Mandhana had led their reunion at Trent Bridge with a maiden T20I century as Shafali felt her way back into the side with a laboured 20, which she then followed up with just 3 in the second match in Bristol. However, her 25-ball 47 in London included seven fours and marked another encouraging step in her comeback before she was bowled by Ecclestone. Mandhana's innings was another classy one as she raised her fifty in 38 balls.

England found a real sense of hope when Filer had Rodrigues caught behind off a faint edge and in her next over accounted for Mandhana. Ghosh was put down by Bell at short backward square, but fell to Dean's outstanding catch in the deep off Wong, the fielder roaring and pumping her fists to thunderous cheers from the crowd.

The home side's fielding woes weren't done though. India needed 12 off the last over and when Scholfield dropped Amanjot Kaur off the third ball, bowled by Bell, they needed eight. A dot ball followed and then Harmanpreet cleared mid-off but could only manage two form the penultimate delivery. As she attempted to clear the rope for the winning runs, Harmanpreet picked out Ecclestone at mid-off and England sealed an unlikely victory.