ENG-W vs IND-W | Team showed the character we were talking about in T20Is, remarks Harmanpreet Kaur

India Women have got to a brilliant start in the three-match ODI series winning the first ODI by seven wickets courtesy of a superb bowling performance and easy run chase. India won the toss and opted to bowl first. They reduced hosts England at 128/6 but a half-century from Davidson Richards helped them post a total of 227/7. Deepti Sharma picked a couple of wickets while Jhulan Goswami was the most economical bowler with just 20 runs from 10 overs taking a solitary scalp. 

India chased the target of 228 easily with almost five overs to spare and a loss of only three wickets. India had earlier lost the T20I series by 2-1 but would look forward to capitalizing on a 1-0 lead and winning the series. Reflecting on the win, Harmanpreet asserted that the team showed the character they lacked in the T20I series. 

“We are very happy with the support we have got, very motivating. Very important win, we showed the character we were talking about in the T20Is. It was a crucial toss to win, and then there was a great bowling partnership between Meghna and Jhulan. I think everyone who came on gave us breakthroughs. (On Deepti Sharma) She is a very smart cricketer, she was doing what we were telling her to bowl,” Harmanpreet said in the post-match presentation.

Smriti Mandhana played a superb knock of 91 runs while Yastika Bhatia scored a fifty coming to bat at no.3. Harmanpreet Kaur ensured a win with a knock of unbeaten 74 runs from 94 balls. Mandhana has been in brilliant form recently which is a big relief for India. Also, Harmanpreet would look to continue the scoring momentum as her role in the middle order becomes pretty crucial. Harmanpreet expresses her joy over getting back in touch after the win. 

“I think there was a great partnership between Yashtika and Smriti, happy with the way I batted as well. Very important to get amongst the runs,” he explained.