'Loosing 2 wicket in powerplay was not ideal, but Yastika took the game away': Mandhana
Chelmsford, May 29
India's stand-in captain Smriti Mandhana praised Yastika Bhatia for making a strong comeback and scoring crucial runs for the team after India defeated England by 38 runs in the opening match of the three-game T20I series at the County Ground.
After being put into bat, India recovered from a poor start to post 188/7 before restricting England to 150/8 to take a 1-0 lead in the series. India had slipped to 7/2 in the very first over after Lauren Bell dismissed Mandhana for a golden duck and removed Shafali Verma soon after. However, Yastika and Rodrigues steadied the innings with a superb 126-run partnership for the third wicket.
Playing her first T20I in two years, Yastika scored 54 off 40 balls while Rodrigues struck a brilliant 69 off 40 deliveries to put India in command. Mandhana admitted India did not begin well but praised the way Yastika and Rodrigues changed the course of the match.
"Losing two wickets in the powerplay was not ideal. Credit to Yastika, who came back after eight months. She took the game away. Jemi doing Jemi things. We should have scored 10 more runs though. Fielding second is an advantage," Mandhana said after the match.
England's chase was led by Amy Jones' 67, while Heather Knight chipped in with 21 during a 64-run partnership for the third wicket. But India's bowlers held their nerve in the second half of the innings.
Debutant pacer Nandni Sharma impressed with figures of 3-34 and played a crucial role in turning the game India's way by dismissing Jones and Dani Gibson in successive deliveries.
Mandhana praised the bowlers for staying composed under pressure and reserved special praise for Nandni.
"We had a lot of inputs from Jemi and Yastika. All the bowlers were executing their plans. They were calm under pressure. Nandni is a character. She has a lot of fire. She picked up crucial wickets and bowled some crucial overs," she added.
The win marked India women's second-biggest victory margin over England in Women's T20Is after their 97-run triumph at Trent Bridge in 2025.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Honestly, losing two wickets early against a strong England side could have been disastrous. But Yastika and Rodrigues' partnership was pure class. The way Yastika took charge after the early setback shows her maturity. Nandni Sharma on debut with 3-34 is the cherry on top! 🎯
Brilliant performance from the girls! But I think Mandhana should have scored more than zero honestly—she's too good a player for a golden duck. But credit where it's due, the recovery was phenomenal. Yastika and Jemimah showed what Indian women's cricket is all about. 💪
What a win! The bowling unit, especially Nandni Sharma on debut, deserves massive credit for holding their nerve in the death overs. 38-run win over England is no joke. The future looks bright for Indian women's cricket. However, we need to work on those early wickets—can't always afford to lose Mandhana and Shafali in the first over.
Impressive performance from India's women's team. The partnership between Yastika and Rodrigues was the difference-maker. England's Amy Jones played well too (67 off...), but Indian bowlers were just too good today. This series should be competitive.
Yastika Bhatia's comeback story is inspiring—dropped for 8 months, then returns to score a vital fifty in a pressure match. The way she and Jemimah turned the game around shows the depth in our batting. And Nandni Sharma's debut spell (3/34) was electric! This is what happens when you back players with talent and temperament
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.