India 50 for 1 (Shafali 21) beat Australia 133 (Reddy 4-22) by 21 runs (DLS method)
Renuka’s powerplay control
Bowling three consecutive overs in the powerplay is a big ask, but Renuka performed her role exceptionally despite going for boundaries off the last two balls of her first over. After that, her next two cost just two runs including the wicket of Beth Mooney who skied a catch into the off side. The fifth over of the innings was a maiden to Litchfield who took nine balls to get off the mark. However, after Renuka’s maiden, Australia caught up strongly with 35 off the next two overs.
At 68 for 2 after seven, the home side were well placed. Then they lost Perry, brilliantly caught by Harmanpreet Kaur running back from mid-off, which was the start of a superb evening for Reddy. She removed Litchfield – who had overcome her sticky start – with the first delivery of the next over, another ball skied high which this time was taken by the keeper. Between those wickets, Ashleigh Gardner had tamely chipped Deepti Sharma to midwicket meaning Australia had lost half their side before the halfway mark of the innings.
Wareham and Nicola Carey, the latter recalled for the first time since 2022, threatened to rebuild, but Reddy returned to have Wareham taken at cover the ball after she was dropped at deep square leg. Next delivery, another catch went down when Reddy couldn’t hold a return chance offered by Annabel Sutherland but she would later close out the innings by bowling Darcie Brown.
Australia’s curious order
India get (just) enough overs
As the rain started to fall, India were well placed but if the match didn’t reach five overs it would have all been for nothing. Molineux brought herself on for the fifth over and with her first delivery had Shafali taken at deep midwicket. But her next five deliveries cost 13 as Jemimah Rodrigues opened her account with a first-ball boundary and Smriti Mandhana struck back-to-back fours. India deserved nothing less than the victory.
