India Women Collapse to 214 Despite Mandhana, Kaur Fifties in 1st ODI

India began under challenging circumstances when Pratika Rawal fell lbw to Megan Schutt on the very first delivery of the match, before Shafali Verma followed soon after, dismissed off a sharp return catch from Darcie Brown. At 31/2 in the eighth over, India relied heavily on Mandhana to anchor the innings.

However, just when India seemed to be recovering, the tide turned. Ashleigh Gardner removed Jemimah Rodrigues, who walked back after scoring eight off 13 deliveries.

Mandhana rode her luck early with a few edges flying past the fielders but soon began to find her rhythm, playing some elegant drives through the covers and powerful pulls. She brought up a composed half-century off 61 balls, stabilising India's innings amidst the pressure from Australia's disciplined seam attack.

However, the pressure on the visitors increased after Tahlia McGrath got rid of Mandhana for 58 with a brilliant catch at fine leg. Alana King added further pressure, dismissing Deepti Sharma in the very next over as half of the Indian XI was back in the hut at the halfway mark.

By the 35th over, India's situation worsened even with captain Harmanpreet at the crease. The skipper struggled to break free and was still hanging around, on 33 off 59 balls, as Richa Ghosh fought to get going at the other end.

Ghosh, however, was dismissed by Sophie Molineux in the 33rd over, caught by Georgia Voll at backward point for 23 off 38 balls. It was a superb diving effort from Voll, as Ghosh tried to cut the ball but couldn't keep it down, with the extra bounce proving troublesome.

Kashvee Gautam came in next and remained cautious. India were 145/6 in the 35th over, with Harmanpreet still battling at the crease, though with little support. Australia's bowlers, especially Molineux and Alana King, continued to tighten their grip, maintaining constant pressure on India.

King, who had been excellent with the ball throughout, kept things tight, taking the key wicket of Ghosh and limiting India's scoring options. She had a close LBW appeal turned down against Gautam but bowled an excellent over, making the ball kick up from the pitch. Meanwhile, Molineux's steady, disciplined bowling kept India's scoring rate sluggish.

As the game progressed, India faced an uphill battle. With just 15 overs left, Harmanpreet needed to anchor innings and rely on the lower order to pull off a near-impossible recovery. Australia's tight bowling and smart fielding had put them firmly in control, with India needing a substantial partnership to even think about challenging the target.

The Indian captain raised her bat after scoring her 23rd ODI fifty, also her sixth against the Aussies, and added the impetus that the Indian scoreboard had desperately been looking for.

The turning point came when Gardner secured a breakthrough by dismissing Harmanpreet, thanks to an excellent diving catch in the deep by Voll, which significantly impacted India's innings. This marked the seventh time the Australian all-rounder had dismissed the Indian captain in international cricket.

With India not having a set batter in the back end, the lower order crumbled as Gardner struck for a third time when she returned to bowl her next over, as the visitors lost their eighth wicket when Kranti Gaud handed one straight into the hands of Sophie Molineux.

Shree Charani's stay on the field, too, was cut short by Schutt, who returned to pick her second scalp of the day. Kashvee took the game deep and showed her skills with the bat but was eventually run out in the penultimate over of the innings as India were bundled out for 214 runs on board.

Brief Scores: India 214/10 in 48.3 overs (Smriti Mandhana 58, Harmanpreet Kaur 53; Ashleigh Gardner 3-33, Megan Schutt 2-42) against Australia.

- IANS