Jemimah, Nandni, Yastika fire India to dominant win in T20I series opener against England

India made a strong statement in the opening T20I of their England tour, beating the hosts by 38 runs in a performance that highlighted their depth, intent and form ahead of the upcoming Women’s World T20 Cup. Jemimah Rodrigues, Yastika Bhatia and debutant Nandni Sharma put in outstanding performances as India took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series at the County Ground in Chelmsford.

India batted first at 188 for 7, anchored by a definitive stand of 126 runs for the second wicket between Jemimah Rodrigues and Yastika Bhatia. The visitors got off to a shaky start as they lost Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana to Lauren Bell in the first game. However, Yastika quickly turned the tide and dismantled Issy Wong for 27 runs in the second over to put India back on track.

INDW vs ENGW, 1st T20I: Highlights | Scorecard

Rodrigues was an outstanding performer, scoring a fluent 69 off 40 balls, with 10 crisp boundaries and a six. Yastika, who returned to the T20I line-up after two years, played a composed knock of 54 off 40 balls as India maintained control even after early setbacks. Deepti Sharma added a quick 22 off 13 deliveries at the death to take India close to the 190 mark.

England’s bowling attack, led by Lauren Bell and Sophie Ecclestone, struck early, but once the Indian batting settled, they struggled to maintain the flow of runs. Fielding errors and inconsistent lengths allowed India to accelerate through the middle overs and set a challenging target.

NANDNI SHARMA EXCELLENT

In response, England started positively but soon lost momentum as India’s bowling unit applied constant pressure. Debutant Nandni Sharma impressed with figures of 4-0-34-3, breaking the backbone of England’s chase and recording one of the best T20I debut bowling figures for India in women’s cricket.

Amy Jones led England’s resistance with a fighting 67 but lacked support as wickets fell at regular intervals. The middle order failed to build a partnership while the Indian spinners tightened control through the middle overs to push the required course out of reach.

Former captain Heather Knight made 21 off 24 balls before Shree Charani was dismissed, finishing with economy figures of 4-0-25-1. Kranti Goud took two wickets while Deepti Sharma also took a wicket as England were restricted to 150 for 8 in their chase.

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Issued by:

sabyasachi chowdhury

Published on:

29 May 2026 09:59 IST