Deepti digs deep to deliver India's four-wicket win

Deepti Sharma gave India the upper hand against England again, although in more conventional style this time, with a match-winning half-century at Southampton for a 1-0 lead in their three-match ODI series.

The last time these sides met in an ODI in England, in 2022, Deepti scored an unbeaten fifty to rescue her side from an early stumble then ran out Charlie Dean while backing up on the last ball to seal a 3-0 ODI series sweep at Lord's.

On Wednesday night, Deepti's unbeaten 62 off 64 balls allowed India to chase down 259 to win by four wickets with 10 balls to spare. Her 90-run partnership for the fifth wicket off 86 balls with Jemimah Rodrigues trumped the corresponding century stand between Sophia Dunkley and Alice Davidson-Richards, who both passed fifty to take England to 258 for 6.

Both sides made a scrappier start than they might have liked to their build-up for the World Cup, which starts in India and Sri Lanka in 11 weeks' time. India missed chances in the field and made hard work of their pursuit early, while England were forced to defend a modest total after suffering an early batting collapse and ultimately couldn't take the wickets they needed.

India's top order made starts but could not convert. Lauren Bell removed the threat of Smriti Mandhana, the leading run-scorer by some way on the T20I leg of the tour, via a faint edge to wicketkeeper Amy Jones for a 24-ball 28 in the eighth over.

Fellow opener Pratika Rawal faced 51 deliveries for her 36 before she was bowled by Sophie Ecclestone to make it 94 for 2 in the 19th.

When Harleen Deol was unnecessarily run out via a direct hit from Davidson-Richards because she left her bat hovering off the ground well beyond the crease while her foot was short of the crease, England were in the contest.

And Dean bettered the hosts' position when she got one to grip from outside off and strike Harmanpreet Kaur on the knee-roll, England's review bearing fruit when the ball was shown to be hitting middle stump. At that point, India needed 135 runs at just under a run a ball.

Deepti took control, striking the only six of the match when she launched Bell over deep midwicket to move into the 30s.

She was on 40 when Bell beat her attempted pull and hit the pad, the ball racing away for four leg byes when replays suggested she would have been given out lbw had England reviewed.

Rodrigues was on 48 when she messed up an attempted scoop of Lauren Filer, gloving the ball to Jones to give England another opening.

Deepti brought up her fifty off 52 balls sweeping Dean to deep square leg.

When Dean had Richa Ghosh stumped advancing down the pitch in her final over, India needed 30 runs off 33 balls but Deepti and Amanjot Kaur saw them home.

Dunkley, reprieved on 23 and 43, reached 83 off 92 deliveries before she fell on the final ball of the innings. She shared a 106-run stand for the fifth wicket with Davidson-Richards, who scored 53, to rescue England from 97 for 4.

It could have been worse for the hosts had India held their chances. Davidson-Richards was on 16 when Kranti Goud fumbled an attempted return catch and Nat Sciver-Brunt, England's captain back from a groin injury which kept her out of the last three T20Is, was put down by Mandhana at midwicket off Sneh Rana before going on to score 41.

Off-spinner Rana went wicketless from seven overs across her four appearances in the T20Is in her comeback to the format after more than two years. But she took 2 for 31 from 10 overs to be the pick of India's bowlers in this match, Goud the other multiple wicket-taker with 2 for 55 from nine.

Unable to reprise the success of their opening partnership which yielded 424 runs in two matches against West Indies earlier this summer, Jones and Tammy Beaumont both fell cheaply as England slumped to 20 for 1 in the first four overs.

That was thanks to Goud, the 21-year-old right-arm seamer making just her third international appearance. She started inauspiciously with a dot ball then three consecutive wides before sending down an absolute gem that nipped back off the seam, beat Jones's bat and crashed into the top of off stump.

It took an India review to give Goud her second when she rapped Beaumont on the front pad as she strode across her stumps, with ball-tracking confirming impact on the top of middle and off.

Sciver-Brunt and Emma Lamb repaired the damage with a 71-run partnership for the third wicket. They struggled to find the boundary through overs 13-17, however, as India mixed up their bowling options and it was Rana who removed both in the space of 12 deliveries.

Lamb tried to break the shackles and picked out Harmanpreet at mid-off, and a wonderful catch by Rodrigues at short midwicket sent Sciver-Brunt on her way.

Shree Charani, Player of the Series with 10 wickets in the T20Is, broke the union between Dunkley and Davison-Richards when she had the latter stumped, despite a fumble from wicketkeeper Ghosh.

Dunkley fell on the last ball, bowled by Amanjot's full-length cutter, a neat cameo of 23 not out from 19 balls by Sophie Ecclestone adding valuable runs but it wasn't enough.