India opener Smriti Mandhana almost missed being the first woman to record a Test century at Lord’s as the iconic ground hosted its first women’s Test on Friday.
India were bowled out for 285 against England on the first day after losing the toss, with the graceful Mandhana scoring 83 and captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Deepti Sharma also scoring fifties.
While Mandhana (83) and captain Kaur (58) shared a fourth-wicket stand of 89, India appeared headed for a first-innings total over 300.
Mandhana’s dismissal, caught brilliantly by the wicketkeeper standing up to the stumps after edging a delivery from fast bowler Issy Wong, triggered a dramatic collapse as India slipped from 190-3.
The slide continued when captain Harmanpreet Kaur was bowled by a superb off-break from England debutant Mady Villiers off the final ball before tea.
Sophie Ecclestone (3-68), a left-arm spinner, cleaned off the tail as India lost their final four wickets for 11 runs.
Before stumps, fast bowler Kranti Gaud’s inswinger dismissed England opener Tammy Beaumont for just two runs. Beaumont will retire from international duty following this game.
England were 21-1 at stumps.
This match marks yet another turning point in the development of women’s cricket after 142 years and 150 matches of men’s Test cricket at Lord’s.
This Test is being held 50 years after the first significant women’s match, a one-day international between Australia and England, took place at the London stadium.
On Friday, the England team assembled on the outfield to ring the five-minute bell, which signaled the beginning of play.
Unlike their 1976 predecessors, India was eliminated from the tournament in a group-stage match at the “Home of Cricket,” and England was playing their second game at Lord’s in less than a week after losing to bitter rivals Australia in Sunday’s T20 World Cup final.
Women were prohibited from entering the Long Room fifty years ago, and they are still decades away from joining the Marylebone Cricket Club, which owns Lord’s.
Before taking the field for the pre-match anthems on Friday, the teams passed through the pavilion’s centerpiece to thunderous applause.
“It is an amazing feeling to play a Test match here. Women’s cricket has grown a lot in the last four to five years,” AFP quoted Deepti Sharma telling reporters after stumps.
At the age of 29 years and 357 days, Mandhana became the youngest woman to appear in 300 international games across all formats, an achievement that women cricketers of the amateur era could hardly have predicted.
Shafali Verma was caught by a diving Jones off Lauren Filer after England won the toss.
During a run-a-ball fifty, Mandhana slog-swept Ecclestone for six after cover-driving Lauren Bell for several fours.
“I think she batted really well,” said Sharma of Mandhana. “Sometimes a few players got out early and someone has to take that responsibility. I think she showed her character today.”
According to Wong, who claimed 2-41 in 12 overs, England also had a decent day.
“When you win the toss and bowl, getting yourself into a position where you bowl the opposition out before the end of play is a really good effort,” she said.
In just the eighth Test of her lengthy career, Kaur swept Villiers for another boundary and cut Bell through point for four.
A women’s Test at Lord’s was “late but not too late,” according to the 37-year-old India legend in the build-up, and Kaur celebrated with a solid fifty off 99 balls, including six fours.
The previous England mark of 335 multi-format international wickets held by retired fast bowler Katherine Sciver-Brunt, the wife of current England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, was surpassed when Ecclestone struck for the first time to have Sayali Satghare lbw.
Ecclestone is only surpassed on the all-time list by the Indian pair of Sharma (357 wickets) and Jhulan Goswami (355).
