India’s skipper Harmanpreet Kaur led his team to 88-run victory in the second One-Day International, giving India their first series victory over England since 1999.

In the second ODI against England on Wednesday, India Women skipper Harmanpreet Kaur rose to the challenge and blasted a stunning 143 not out off just 111 deliveries. Her massive century enabled India to win the ODI series with one game remaining, setting a new record. After hitting a run-a-ball hundred, Harmanpreet smashed 43 off her subsequent 11 deliveries. She smacked four sixes and 18 boundaries in a stunning display. It was Kaur’s 5th century in ODI for India.

Players and fans alike were fascinated by Harmanpreet’s amazing knock on social media.

“When you’re in form make it count, and that’s what Harmanpreet is doing this year. Once again stands up in an important game. Congratulations on a special hundred,”

tweeted former India batter Wasim Jaffer.

“What a magnificent innings by @ImHarmanpreet! An unbeaten and entertaining knock of 143 with 18 fours and 4 sixes. Keep shining,”

tweeted former India spinner Amit Mishra.

When England won the toss and decided to bowl, Harmanpreet assumed responsibility for leading the visitors to a substantial score after Smriti Mandhana perished for 40 after giving India a great start with Yastika Bhatia.

Harleen Deol, who earned 58 points off of a possible 72, helped Harmanpreet. For the fourth wicket, the two added 113 runs together. The captain then performed the labour-intensive tasks as Pooja Vastrakar and Deepti Sharma made stylish cameo appearances.

With Harmanpreet’s 143*, India scored 333/5. Harmanpreet also executed a magnificent direct hit from mid-on to dismiss England opener Tammy Beaumont and give India the first breakthrough, as if her prowess with the bat weren’t enough.

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Afterwards, Indian bowlers took over, and even though Danni Wyatt (65), Alice Capsey, and Amy Jones all played solid innings of 39 each, England was bowled out for 245. Spinner Charlie Dean (37) put up some resistance against the lower order as well, but she ended up being the last wicket to be taken. With the bowling, Renuka Singh stood out, taking four wickets. Since 1999, India Women have not won an ODI series in England.

EN-W vs IN-W 2nd ODI: India 333 for 5 (Harmanpreet 143*, Deol 58) beat England 245 (Wyatt 65, Renuka 4-57) by 88 runs

Harmanpreet Kaur’s transcending unbeaten century delivered India a reverberating triumph over England at Canterbury and an unassailable 2-0 ODI series lead.

India’s 88-run win, based on Harmanpreet’s 143 not out off 111 balls, implies Saturday’s finale at Lord’s will be a dead rubber with regards to the series with England’s best expectation currently claiming the two ICC Women’s Championship points on offer in a consolation victory after winning the T20I leg of the tour 2-1.

Asked to accomplish the first 300-plus run chase in quite a while’s ODI after India posted 333 for 5 – their second-highest in the format, England managed 245 in reply, Danni Wyatt’s 50 going in vain as Renuka Singh claimed four wickets to put the win beyond England’s reach and India winning with 34 balls to spare.

Having won the toss and choosing to bowl first in cool and cloudy conditions, England knew the key to forcing the series to a decider at the home of cricket was to decrease the danger of India’s firing top order.

Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet had delivered their side to a commanding seven-wicket win in the opening ODI at Hove on Sunday, with 91 and 74 not out respectively, Mandhana also keeping her side in contention during the T20Is with an unbeaten 79 in the second match.

England started alright when Kate Cross, playing her 50th ODI, bowled Shafali Verma in the second over of the match and Charlie Dean took a sharp return catch to eliminate Yasatika Bhatia and break a second-wicket stand of 54.

Opener Mandhana looked dangerous once more however, stripping off four fours and smacking Sophie Ecclestone over the fence at wide long-on on en route to 40. Yet, it was Ecclestone who finished Mandhana’s thump with one that spun back in to beat the attempted sweep and strike the side of her back thigh for lbw. At that stage Mandhana had placed on 33 runs with Kaur, who carried on in fine touch with Harleen Deol keeping pace nicely.

Deol dispatched Ecclestone down the ground for six to move to 47 and raised her fifty a brief time later with a single dabbed through midwicket and afterward carried India past the 200-mark with another maximum, swept over deep square leg off Lauren Ringer.

When Bell had Deol caught by Wyatt at deep midwicket, India were on track to post a monumental total and Harmanpreet was in a staggering mood.

Harmanpreet released her trademark slog-sweep overwhelming everything in the vicinity and was likewise punishing to the off side, her two sixes over the covers off debutant Freya Kemp bookending a merciless slog off Ecclestone over the deep midwicket boundary.

Kemp, the 17-year-old left-arm seamer who has had a noteworthy maiden international summer in England’s T20I team, endured a torrid introduction to the longer format. After bowling seven overs for 28 runs, she wound up surrendering 82 runs off her 10-over allocation for only one wicket, that of Pooja Vastrakar, who was caught by Emma Sheep in the 46th over. It was the most runs yielded by an England bowler in a Women’s ODI, trailed by individual seamer Ringer, who took 1 for 79 from 10 overs.

Harmanpreet added the overwhelming majority as she and Deepti Sharma heaped on one more 71 runs Vastrakar’s excusal at a stunning partnership run rate of 17.75, the highest for a 50-plus stand in Women’s ODIs where information is available.

They took 62 runs off the last three overs, 26 of those approaching off the 48th as Kemp sent down six wide deliveries and went for three fours and a six. Harmanpreet grabbed 18 of the 19 runs Kemp yielded off the final over, including another aerial cover drive for six followed promptly by three consecutive fours to finish a dazzling showcase.

At the point when Capsey fell for 39 guiding Deepti to Shafali at mid-off, it was in the possession of experienced pair Wyatt and Amy Jones – England’s acting captain without the injured Heather Knight and Nat Sciver, who is taking an mental-health break – to steady  the home side once more.

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They set up on 65 runs however when Renuka bowled Wyatt for 65 with a plunging yorker to guarantee her third wicket and Dayalan Hemalatha had Jones befuddled with just her third delivery after entering the assault, it seemed like only a matter of time before India finished things.

Renuka claimed her fourth when Ecclestone picked Deol on the deep midwicket boundary. Before long Shafali got her maiden ODI wicket – and third in international cricket – when failed to overturn her lbw excusal through a now-working DRS. Dean delivered a strong thump at No. 9 to reach 37 from 44 balls before she was the last batter out, puzzled off the bowling of Hemalatha, however the damage was long done, well before – by Harmanpreet.

ENG(W) vs IND(W), 1st ODI: India 232 for 3 (Mandhana 91, Harmanpreet 74*, Bhatia 50) beat England 227 for 7 (Davidson-Richards 50*, Wyatt 43, Deepti 2-33) by seven wickets

A strong and classy knock of 91 from vice-captain Smriti Mandhana fueled India to triumph after their bowlers confined England to 227 for 7 in the first ODI in Hove. Almost everything went ideal for India after they won the toss and decided to bowl on a slow pitch. They got early wickets. They kept things tight. Also, they were so ruthless they permitted just a single partnership to cross fifty runs in the entire innings. If that wasn’t a sufficient centre, when it was their chance to bat, three of the top four – Mandhana, Yastika Bhatia and Harmanpreet Kaur – hit half-centuries to seal the chase with 34 balls to spare.

India’s bowling was a collective performance from the quicks and spinners that left England without any trace of momentum in a stop-start innings and the circumstances were such that low bounce accounted for two wickets. The hosts had slipped to 94 for 5 and afterward 128 for 6 and were gazing at a much lower total until Danni Wyatt hit 43 and Alice Davidson-Richards made unbeaten 50 towards the end.

India dominated England from the start

India had England’s players on a leash right from the start with the return of Jhulan Goswami following six months for her farewell series. Emma Lamb whipped Meghna for two fours through the leg side before she edged a bouncer behind off a similar bowler in the eighth over. Nine balls later, Goswami’s inswinger caught Tammy Beaumont lbw for 7 off 21 with England having crept to only 26 for 2 in 10 overs.

Sophia Dunkley, who scored vigorously against India during the T20Is, and debutant Alice Capsey steered the hosts through a steady period however a spin squeeze from both ends ended the 43-run stand when Harmanpreet took a one-handed catch at short midwicket to send Capsey back. In what would become a pattern for the whole England innings, when it seemed Wyatt and Dunkley were rebuilding steadily, Dunkley first handed a clear catch to cover off Harleen Deol and a ball that kept extremely low from Rajeshwari Gayakwad redirected away from Amy Jones foot to hit the stumps, leaving England 94 for 5.

India lost Shafali Verma for 1 however Bhatia and Mandhana’s 96-run stand kept them ticking at over 5.50 an over. Assuming Bhatia’s innings saw a few half possibilities and edges land securely, Mandhana’s was loaded with elegant cover drives that fetched her regular boundaries. She struck three of those one after another off Kate Cross and Issy Wong. India were 59 for 1 toward the end of the powerplay, having hit 11 fours contrasted with England’s three in the same period. Conditions looked much better for scoring during the chase and Bhatia traded out, top-edging a six and clacking three additional fours to raise a 45-ball fifty. She fell following however, when she descended the track and missed one from Dean.

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Mandhana was confident as ever and along with Harmanpreet eased along with the asking rate around four an over. Harmanpreet took out her trademark sweeps and Mandhana crunched Dean back down the ground for her 24th 50 years. England likewise attempted a spin squeeze with Ecclestone, Dean and Lamb however it didn’t work. With an easy 71 required off 20 overs, Harmanpreet scooped Cross for a four and Mandhana smoked Wong over long-on for six to close in on hundred, however a cross-batted swipe against Cross brought about a top edge and Mandhana was caught at mid-on to miss the mark.

Only 30 runs left for victory from that point, Harmanpreet raised a patient 80-ball fifty before hitting the winning runs with a sweep for six.

ENG(W) vs IND(W), T20I: England 126 for 3 (Dunkley 49, Capsey 38*) beat India 122 for 8 (Ghosh 33, Ecclestone 3-25, Glenn 2-11) by seven wickets

A nerveless display from 18-year-old Alice Capsey defeated a late hiccup by England to seal victory over India in their third and last T20I for a 2-1 series win in Bristol.

In a low-scoring match, England’s spinners Sophie Ecclestone and Sarah Glenn tied India down, restricting their objective to only 123 after the guests fell to 35 for 5.

England’s openers, led by Sophia Dunkley’s 49, broke the back of the deficit before the hosts lost 3 for 10 in three overs to set up a tighter finish than they would have enjoyed.

However, Capsey – playing her tenth international game having made her debut less than two months ago- marshalled the run-chase with Bryony Smith, who got back to the England ranks this summer for the first time in over three years.

HIGHLIGHTS

England’s (almost) perfect beginning

Early signs didn’t drill well for England in the field after Amy Jones won the toss and chose to bowl first. Jones missed a stumping off Shafali Verma, charging at Smith on the second ball of the match and beaten by the extra bounce, which likewise deluded the wicketkeeper, who failed to gather cleanly. Smith then got her fingertips to what might have been a return catch low to her left next ball.

Smith claimed the prized wicket of Smriti Mandhana, the star of India’s eight-wicket triumph in Derby on Tuesday, who skied the ball down the ground exclusively to find Ecclestone charging round from long-on to make extensive progress and take a beautiful diving catch, which – in spite of the fact that it touched the ground as she finished her diveroll – was taken care of by that point and therefore deemed a legal dismissal. Danni Wyatt reflected her teammates athleticism with a stunning effort running in from deep midwicket and launching herself forward to excuse Sabbhineni Meghana, making her first appearance of the tour instead of Kiran Navgire.

Caught in a spin

India had gone 60 balls without a boundary off the bat before Ghosh controlled Smith through midwicket in the fourteenth over. Ecclestone had accounted for Sneh Rana two balls before that when England overturned her not-out lbw decision. There was no question when Ecclestone caught Rana in the penultimate over, beating her endeavoured switch clear with one that was following onto leg stump.

In between, Deepti made a blunder when she attempted to clear Ecclestone and missed. As Jones shuffled the ball behind the stumps, Deepti slid her foot out of her crease thinking the keeper had put the ball down when she had actually gathered and plucked off the bails.

Pressure release

England required 46 off 52 balls and, when Jones lost her off stump to Radha, they were 79 for 3 and India had a flash of hope. Capsey’s casual reverse-swept four off Rana eased the strain, the first of three boundaries in quite a while as Smith flicked Renuka Singh through fine leg and Capsey sent one through the hands of Hemalatha in the deep.

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With the situation solidly back in support of England, Capsey skirted down to meet a Rana full toss and smear it over additional cover for four more. Capsey and Smith put on a solid stand of 47 runs off 33 balls in all. Capsey’s consecutive fours off Sharma secured victory by seven wickets with 10 balls to spare and left her 38 not out from 24 balls, smoothly upheld by Smith with 13 from 14.

ENG(W) vs IND(W) T20I: India 146 for 2 (Mandhana 79*) beat England 142 for 7 (Kemp 51*, Rana 3-24) by eight wickets

A brilliant unbeaten half-century from Smriti Mandhana saw India to triumph by eight wickets over England with 20 balls to spare in their second of three T20Is to even out the series 1-1.

If this evening was anything to go by, the moist and dreary beginning of autumn has so far been confined to either end of the country. Durham had offered a soggy opening to the series on Saturday as England facilitated a nine-wicket win in conditions that weren’t to India’s preference. Then, London was covered in consistent rain for a good part of Tuesday. The midlands, notwithstanding, were sticking on to summer as England’s innings advanced in a bright evening at Derby’s Incora County Ground.

HIGHLIGHTS

Mandhana all class

Set a below-par target, because of England’s early collapse and a vastly improved performance in the field by India, Mandhana played a key role in bringing it in, facing 53 balls and finding the boundary 13 times.

She put on an opening stand worth 55 with Shafali Verma, who fell for 20 to a sharp return catch by Sophie Ecclestone and a solid partnership of 69 with Harmanpreet Kaur, who ought to have been out on 19 had Danni Wyatt not spilled a clear chance at deep midwicket.

England stagger, India hang on

England began splendidly enough when Sophia Dunkley cut the third ball of the match, from Renuka Singh, for four through midwicket and Wyatt prodded the fifth between backward point and short third. In the following over, however, Dunkley charged at Deepti Sharma’s first ball and was puzzled by Richa Ghosh while Wyatt followed a short time later, edging Renuka to Sneh Rana at first slip.

A mix of phenomenal fielding- an area where India were battered in the opening match – and a blunder by Alice Capsey made it 16 for 3. Capsey had crushed Renuka through the covers and begun returning for a third run, seemingly unaware about Radha Yadav’s splendid effort running round to one side in the deep and rambling at full stretch to stop the ball short of the rope and shoot it smoothly into Harmanpreet inside the ring.

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Kemp shines

Playing her eighth T20I yet batting for just the second time, Kemp came in at No. 7 and continued to revive the England innings with her 37-ball knock. She released three sixes, two times flinging Radha down the ground to bookend her heave over deep midwicket off Renuka. She raised her maiden international fifty with a straight-determined four off the penultimate ball of the innings and finished unbeaten on 51.