Hamanpreet Kaur, the India skipper, produced a game-turning innings of 102 at the Riverside Stadium, which paved the way for the visitors to seal the three-match series against England 2-1.
Harmanpreet now has seven hundreds to her name in the ODI format. However, this was her first 50-plus score in ODIs over 13 innings. The veteran batter started on a rather sedate note, scoring 10 off her first 22 deliveries. A crisply played punch off Lauren Filer in the 26th over helped the India captain to kickstart her innings. Ultimately, she ended up with a strike rate in excess of 120.
“In all the matches I wanted to give my best in batting, but today’s game was very important to us,” she said. “The plan was to spend some time on the wicket and then see how things go. That really worked for me. The first [ten] balls, I didn’t get any runs but then I was just talking to myself: ‘I’m not going to lose myself, just be there, be there for the team’.”
The narrative surrounding India’s series win was more than just about Harmanpreet rediscovering her batting rhythm. It was also about how Kranti Goud impressed with her deceptive pace and movement. The pacer finished with a rich haul of nine wickets in the series, which included a game-breaking spell of 6 for 52 in the final ODI. She made the early incisions by removing Amy Jones and Tammy Beaumont. In her later spells, she added four more wickets as she provided the finishing touches to India’s victory.
“She’s been really impressive whenever she was on the field and bowling for the team,” Harmanpreet noted. “I’m really happy with the kind of bowling she did today and whenever we needed a breakthrough, she was there for the team.”
Ahead of the 2025 World Cup to be held in India and Sri Lanka, the Harmanpreet-led side will take on Australia, the defending champions, in an ODI series. Harmanpreet observed that India’s successful tour of England, which included series wins in both the abridged versions of the game, will give them the required self-belief to compete against the seven-time 50-over champions.
“Today was a totally different situation and different pitch, different atmosphere. In home conditions, it will be different,” she said. “But whenever you win, that can always give you a positive mindset and keep you in a good place. This series definitely will give us a lot of confidence but, again, when we go back, we have to start again from ball one.”