One-off Test: India 154/1 at stumps on Day 2 as Mandhana, Kranti hand visitors 269-run lead vs ENG

London, July 11 (IANS) India tightened their grip on the one-off women’s Test at Lord’s with a dominant all-round display on Day 2, riding Kranti Gaud’s maiden five-wicket haul and an unbroken half-century from Smriti Mandhana to finish at 154/1 in their second innings, stretching their overall lead to 269 runs with two full days still to play.

The visitors began the day sensing an opportunity with England resuming on 113/5, still 148 runs adrift. That opening soon turned into complete control as India’s bowlers wrapped up the innings for 170 inside the first hour after lunch.

England briefly resisted through captain Nat Sciver-Brunt and Amy Jones, who added valuable runs after the overnight collapse. Jones looked positive, while Sciver-Brunt held one end together with a composed 44. However, India struck at crucial intervals to deny the hosts any sustained recovery.

Kranti Gaud once again led the charge. The young seamer produced the breakthrough India desperately wanted by trapping Sciver-Brunt lbw with a delivery that jagged back sharply, ending England’s biggest hope of cutting into the deficit. Sayali Satghare then removed Sophie Ecclestone before Sneh Rana accounted for debutant Mady Villiers, exposing the tail.

Gaud returned to complete a memorable five-wicket haul—her maiden Test five-for and the second of her Test career—by dismissing Lauren Bell, while Deepti Sharma wrapped up the innings as England folded for 170, conceding a substantial 115-run first-innings lead. It was England’s third-lowest first-innings total against India at home and the first five-wicket haul by a pace bowler in a women’s Test in England since Ellyse Perry’s 6/32 at Canterbury in 2015.

Armed with a sizeable cushion, India’s openers ensured England never found a route back into the contest.

Lauren Bell and Lauren Filer began with disciplined spells, extracting movement under overcast conditions, but Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma weathered the early examination before gradually shifting gears. Shafali was the aggressor, driving Bell elegantly through the offside before taking on Sophie Ecclestone with successive boundaries, while Mandhana punished anything short with authoritative pulls.

The pair added 88 runs for the opening wicket, extending their remarkable record together. It was their seventh 50-plus partnership in Tests, the most by any pair in the history of women’s Test cricket.

England’s only breakthrough came when Ecclestone tempted Shafali into an ambitious lofted stroke, the opener miscuing to mid-on for a brisk 33. Although England finally separated the openers, the wicket did little to alter the momentum.

Yastika Bhatia joined Mandhana, and the duo calmly steered India through the final session. Mandhana, who had scored a half-century in the first innings, brought up another composed fifty with a controlled single off Mady Villiers, becoming only the fourth Indian woman to register two fifty-plus scores in the same Test. The milestone also took her to seven Test half-centuries, drawing level with Shantha Rangaswamy and second only to Sandhya Agarwal among Indian women.

While Mandhana mixed caution with elegant strokeplay, driving Ecclestone down the ground for four and later launching the left-arm spinner for a straight six, Bhatia settled in confidently at the other end. The left-hander used her feet effectively against the spinners, collecting boundaries through extra cover and straight down the ground while frustrating England’s attempts to create opportunities.

England rotated Bell, Filer, Issy Wong, Ecclestone, and Villiers in search of inspiration, but inconsistent lines, a few missed chances, and disciplined Indian batting ensured the visitors stayed firmly on top. Mandhana remained unbeaten on 69, while Bhatia was equally assured on 39 not out, with the pair carrying their unbroken stand past fifty before stumps.

By the close, India had reached 154/1, extending their overall lead to 269 runs with nine wickets still in hand. Having dominated with the ball in the morning and controlled proceedings with the bat thereafter, Harmanpreet Kaur’s side now holds all the aces heading into Day 3, while England face the daunting task of forcing their way back into a contest that is rapidly slipping beyond their reach.

Brief scores:

India 285/10 and 154/1 in 42 overs (Smriti Mandhana 69*, Yastika Bhatiya 39*, Shafali Verma 33; Sophie Ecclestone 1-46) lead England 170 all out in 59.1 overs (Amy Jones 52, Nat Sciver-Brunt 44; Kranti Gaud 5-37, Sayali Satghare 2-40, Sneh Rana 2-41, Deepti Sharma 1-10) by 269 runs.

–IANS

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