Key events
Stumps: India 154-1 (lead England by 269 runs)
Mandhana and Bhatia bat out the final over with three easy runs collected off Ecclestone. That brings an end to a punishing day for England and a fantastic one for India.
Smriti Mandhana finishes unbeaten on 69 and will resume tomorrow hoping to become the first female Test cricketer to etch her name onto the *batting* honours board. Her teammate Kranti Gaud made history earlier today, her 5-37 seeing her become the first on the bowling board.
41st over: India 151-1 (Mandhana 68, Bhatia 36) Lauren Bell can hold her head high, she finishes another probing over and it will be her last of the day. She has 0-16 from her 11 overs with five maidens. Well bowled, just needed a few in that wickets column.
40th over: India 150-1 (Mandhana 68, Bhatia 36) Ecclestone into her eleventh over of the innings. Mandhana isn’t playing for stumps! A biff back over the bowler’s head for four. This has been brutal from India, they’ve played England off the park today.
39th over: India 144-1 (Mandhana 63, Bhatia 35) Lauren Bell is summoned for a final burst before stumps. She bowled really well earlier for no reward and is on the money again, just a single into the covers from Mandhana.
38th over: India 143-1 (Mandhana 62, Bhatia 35) Oh no! Amy Jones fails to gather a ball down the leg side with Bhatia having been dragged out of her ground by Ecclestone. The batter lost her balance and should have been stumped but the normally excellent Jones fluffs it when it really matters. More misery for England as the shadows creep across Lord’s.
37th over: India 142-1 (Mandhana 61, Bhatia 35) Four more off Villiers. What she would give to find the magic ball now.
36th over: India 138-1 (Mandhana 59, Bhatia 33) Wong drops short and Mandhana shows her class and timing with an open faced glide past point for four more. England clinging on for stumps a little.
Erm. Don’t say it.
35th over: India 132-1 (Mandhana 54, Bhatia 32) Bhatia has been the perfect foil for Mandhana since Verma departed. She slams Villiers over cover for four more and the former just carries on in the slipstream with a single in the same place.
34th over: India 127-1 (Mandhana 53, Bhatia 28) Sciver-Brunt turns to Issy Wong and her Stuart Broad-esque headband for inspiration and ideally a wicket(s). No wickets but no runs either. A maiden.
33rd over: India 127-1 (Mandhana 53, Bhatia 28) Bhatia with another bosh over cover for four.
32nd over: India 122-1 (Mandhana 53, Bhatia 23) Seven runs pocketed off Villiers with ease. My sources tell me the highest fourth innings chase in Women’s Test cricket is 198. Ah. India already lead by 237 and they have the small matter of nine wickets in the second innings hutch.
31st over: India 115-1 (Mandhana 51, Bhatia 18) Ecclestone after the drinks break, Bhatia collects a single. England under the slow, grinding cosh and they look short of inspiration.
I’ll use this quiet/punishing time to also plug a thriller happening in the women’s singles final over at Wimbledon:
30th over: India 114-1 (Mandhana 51, Bhatia 17) Three runs collected off Villiers and it is time for the second drink of the session. Mandhana removes her helmet to reveal a broad smile, not many of those on the faces of England’s fielders. India lead by 229 runs.
Meanwhile… it’s all happening in Southampton:
29th over: India 111-1 (Mandhana 51, Bhatia 14)
28th over: India 109-1 (Mandhana 50, Bhatia 13) Smriti Mandhana goes to fifty by guiding Villiers past point for a single. That’s her second half century of the match, she won’t want to miss out on converting for the second time.
27th over: India 106-1 (Mandhana 49, Bhatia 11) Bhatia is a dangerous player to have come out in this situation. She skips down and launches Ecclestone for four more.
26th over: India 101-1 (Mandhana 48, Bhatia 7) Mandhana guides Villiers past point for a couple to bring up India’s hundred. Their overall lead is 216 runs and there is so much time left in the game. Villiers is getting some sharp turn off the surface too, another day of sun and this surface could crumble like Macy Gray’s world circa 1999.
It’s been a long day, ok.
25th over: India 98-1 (Mandhana 46, Bhatia 7) Ecclestone whirls through a warp speed maiden.
24th over: India 98-1 (Mandhana 46, Bhatia 7) Mandhana and Bhatia are content to work Villiers for a couple of singles. Shadows lengthening slightly at Lord’s but it still looks fiendishly hot.
23rd over: India 96-1 (Mandhana 45, Bhatia 6) Three single for India. England need to take some late scalps here on day two if they are to have a chance in this Test.
22nd over: India 93-1 (Mandhana 43, Bhatia 5) Mady Villiers into the attack and she’s greeted by a charging Bhatia, the batter gets nowhere near the pitch of the ball but lofts over mid off for four.
21st over: India 89-1 (Mandhana 43, Bhatia 1) Yastika Bhatia in at first drop for India. Lauren Bell got her with a beauty that somehow went both ways in the first innings. Spin first up for her today and she’s off the mark with a poke into the off side.
WICKET! Shafali Verma c sub (Emma Lamb) b Ecclestone 33 (India 88-1)
Ecclestone gets the breakthrough for weary England. Verma caught going for a big one down the ground and sub fielder Emma Lamb takes a steady catch.
20th over: India 87-0 (Mandhana 42, Verma 33) Filer is punched for four more through cover point by Mandhana, India’s lead is now up and over 200. They’ve shown England how to bat in Test match cricket.
19th over: India 82-0 (Mandhana 37, Verma 33) Smriti Mandhana is a joy to watch in full flight, Sophie Ecclestone comes on after a drinks break and Mandhana does not let her settle, she dances down the track and lofts the bowler back over her head for SIX. Beautiful and Brutal.
18th over: India 73-0 (Mandhana 29, Verma 32) Lauren Filer comes into the attack to replace Wong but once again her radar is awry. She floats a ball down the leg side and it is simply helped on its way to the fine leg fence by Mandhana. Filer flings another down the leg side and gives away a wide on the off side. Its not wheels off yet for England but it might be in about an hour’s time.
17th over: India 66-0 (Mandhana 25, Verma 31) Close! England nearly get the breakthrough they desperately crave with Shafali Verma slicing a drive in the air and inches short of Mady Villiers at point. Bell looks to the heavens. Cruel game.
16th over: India 63-0 (Mandhana 23, Verma 30) Amy Jones shows off her velvet gloves again stood up to Wong. England put the squeeze back on, two maidens in a row but it isn’t exactly hurting India. Only wickets will do that and only if they lose about five for spit in next to no time.
15th over: India 63-0 (Mandhana 23, Verma 30) Lauren Bell into her 8th over on the spin, she’s still scrapping admirably. She beats Verma with one that nips back but it was going over and England wisely opt against sending it upstairs. Ooof! Verma advances and Bell spots her coming, she digs one in short and it spits off the so far lifeless (for pace) pitch and it whistles past the shoulder of the bat.
14th over: India 63-0 (Mandhana 23, Verma 30) This is getting gnarly for England. Wong is taken for twelve runs from her latest, Mandhana picking up three consecutive boundaries through the off side.
Any pressure built up from those post tea maidens:
13th over: India 51-0 (Mandhana 11, Verma 30) Lauren Bell continues, she’s into the seventh over of this spell. Lord’s lets out a low rumble as Verma gets a lovely stride in and languidly drives for four through cover. A smidge over pitched and punished. Fifty up for India.
12th over: India 46-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 26) Wong keeps Verma tied down with five dots but then blots her copybook with a *juicy full bunger that is patted wide of slip for a gimme four.
‘It’s luscious, it’s super, it’s mushious, it’s duper’
11th over: India 42-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 22) Another maiden to Lauren Bell, she’s bowled very well for no reward so far in this innings. She beats Mandhana with one that seams away past the edge too. India lead by 157.
Elsewhere, Buttler and Brook are going tonto on the south coast!
10th over: India 42-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 22) The pressure cooker was starting to hiss but India slam an axe through it. Shafali Verma punches Wong through the off side for four and follows up with a thick edge that flies past Nat Sciver-Brunt at slip, she gets a finger to it but can’t stop the boundary. Wong then goes for the glory ball but starts it too straight and it slides well down the leg side and away for four byes. Gah.
9th over: India 30-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 14) 15,243 at Lord’s today – a world record for a single day at a Women’s Test match. They watch on as Lauren Bell stitches together another maiden, India haven’t scored a run after tea.
8th over: India 30-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 14) Wong slides a few down the leg side, Amy Jones is up to the stumps and shows off some lovely glove work. Wong is operating at the 70mph mark, she neatens her line and finishes a maiden to start.
7th over: India 30-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 14) The players return after tea, Bell starts with a maiden to Mandhana. From Mandhana to bandana, Issy Wong is going to have a bowl and she is sporting a Stuart Broad/Roger Federer headpiece. England need a Broad-esque knee pumpin’ wicket takin’ spell from someone.
Tea: India 30-0 (lead England by 145 runs)
Crikey. A bruising final over before the tea interval for Ecclestone and England. Ecclestone gives it some air and is launched down the ground for four by Verma, clearly annoyed the spinner spears a quicker ball in but is way down the leg side and runs away for a four byes. Ooof that smarts – Ecclestone goes full and is pinged through the colours by Verma for the third boundary of the over. India positively skip off for a cucumber sandwich. England look like they need a stiff drink.
6th over: India 30-0 (Mandhana 10, Verma 14)
5th over: India 17-0 (Mandhana 9, Verma 6) Lovely batting from India! Bell is too full and Verma caresses through the off side for four. Hold the pose. Sophie Ecclestone is coming on for a twirl, it’ll be the last over before tea.
4th over: India 13-0 (Mandhana 9, Verma 2) Crack! Filer tries a short one and it is sent to the fence in style by Mandhana. The noise off the bat was phenomenal, a real gun shot. Three dots follow from length balls when Filer decides to go short for the second time in the over – same result – Mandhana is waiting for it and crunches it away through the leg side.
3rd over: India 4-0 (Mandhana 1, Verma 1) A leg bye gets India moving and Mandhana is off the mark with a push into the covers. Verma then does the same with a clip off the pads. What do we think England could feasibly chase? India lead by 119, I think 250 would be a stretch – hence the need for England to get some wickets toot sweet.
2nd over: India 0-0 (Mandhana 0, Verma 0) Solid from Filer too, she cranks up her pace to 75mph but the surface doesn’t have any spice in it, the ball going through to Amy Jones on the second bounce behind the stumps. Two maidens in a row for England.
1st over: India 0-0 (Mandhana 0, Verma 0) Decent start from Bell, she’s full and straight, zoning in on pads and stumps and making Mandhana play. A maiden to start India’s second innings.
The action is now underway at The Utilita…
