| India 134 all out (36.2 overs): Mandhana 35, Dean 4-23, Shrub Sole 2-20 |
| England 136-6 (31.2 overs): Knight 53*, Sciver 45, Meghna 3-22 |
| England won by four wickets |
| scorecard. table |
Rejuvenated England breathed life into their World Cup defense with a four-wicket hammer against India at Mount Maunganui.
Converting from the team strewn with errors in three previous losses, the defending champions took every catch and nailed two direct-hit run-outs to knock out India for 134.
Off-spinner Charlie Dean won 4-23 in only her second World Championship match, while Anya Shrubsole became only the sixth Englishwoman to take 100 international wickets in a day in her 2-20.
In a nervous start to the chase, England were reduced to 4-2 and Nat Sciver survived the ball hitting her stumps without breaking the stirrups.
Sciver went on to make 45 while captain Heather Knight went unbeaten on 53 as the win ended with more than 18 overs to go.
With their first win, England move up to sixth place in the table, just two points behind third-placed India, with the top four qualifying for the semi-finals.
They can’t afford another slip-up, however, and face another must-win situation when they meet hosts New Zealand in Auckland on Sunday (22:00 GMT, Saturday).
India, who are likely to be battling for two spots in the semi-finals with England, New Zealand and the West Indies, meet tournament favorites Australia on Saturday (01:00 GMT).
| bowler | gates | average |
| K Brunt | 164 | 23.92 |
| J Gunn | 136 | 28.10 |
| L swamp | 129 | 26.84 |
| CTaylor | 102 | 23.95 |
| I guha | 101 | 23.21 |
| A shrub sole | 101 | 26.75 |
Energized England is recovering
Just as there was no explanation for the wides, drop catches and fielding errors in the West Indies and South Africa defeats, it’s hard to understand why England were a very different team against India, the side they defeated in the thrilling 2017 final .
Indeed, none of the XI trained on the day between that game and the disappointing loss to South Africa, but England arrived refreshed, relaxed and full of energy.
A hint of what was to come came from the first ball when Sciver’s throw narrowly missed Smriti Mandhana. From then on everything went to England.
Shrubsole threw excellent length to let Yastika Bhatia play and captain Mithali Raj got the point before Kate Cross’s direct strike from the middle was responsible for Deepti Sharma.
When Dean, bowling with flight, dip and control, outperformed both Harmanpreet Kaur and Sneh Rana in her first over, India was 61-5.
While Mandhana stayed, India was dangerous but a missed sweep on Sophie Ecclestone put her lbw for 35.
Although Richa Ghosh made 35 and added 37 with Jhulan Goswami, both fell into the same crossover. First Ghosh was driven out of the middle of the wicket by Sciver’s dive and throw, then Goswami hacked to the point.
Dean returned to take the last wicket and bowled Meghna Singh for her best pieces in an ODI.
Sciver’s luck signals England’s fortunes
England may not only have had a changed perspective, but also a changed fortune.
Faced with excellent swing bowling from Meghna and Goswami, England saw Danni Wyatt held up well by Rana and held Tammy Beaumont lbw captive on the check.
Then came an exceptional moment of luck for Sciver, a direct contrast to the loss to South Africa when she was unlucky enough to be caught by her racquet.
This time, when Sciver was only turning to four and bowling with Goswami, he jammed down only for the ball to roll back onto the center stump. Incredibly, the bails remained unmoved.
Pardoned, Sciver struck with power and authority before giving Pooja Vastrakar a lead, leaving Knight to lead her first half century of the tournament.
Although it was sloppy by England to lose three wickets for 22 runs, Knight remained as a reassuring presence and a six-game winning streak was broken.
England remain in a dangerous position but still go into the clash with New Zealand as World Cup contenders.
“I was not expecting that”
English off-spinner Charlie Dean, who won Player of the Match: “I don’t think I expected that at the beginning of the game, so I’m really happy.
“We fought a lot as a team to come back after a couple of disappointing games and show what we can do. I am really happy.
“I was just trying to keep it simple, bowling as close to the stumps as possible and trusting my best ball.”
England captain Heather Knight: “A bit of relief, to be honest. I think we needed that. It was a bit rough and we lost a few more wickets than we wanted but just getting over the line is really nice for us and hopefully the start of a momentum shift.”
Ex-England weirdo Alex Hartley on Test Match Special: “India know they underperformed but England will breathe a sigh of relief. They were brilliant today, the England side we all know and love. They played fantastic.”
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