Indian women’s team script history at Lord’s 

Lord’s Cricket Ground in London is one of the most iconic cricket arenas in the world. To get your name etched on one of its honours boards is a privilege not afforded to many, only to bowlers who take fifers or more and batters who score centuries.

This incredible ground, with its traditional dressing rooms, boards of honour, Victorian pavilion, and the famous Long Room, has witnessed numerous memorable victories both in Tests and One-Day Internationals. However, this was an unprecedented occasion, as Lord’s had never hosted a women’s Test match before.

As Lord’s opened its doors to women’s Test cricket for the first time ever with a one-off game between England and India, the excitement was palpable, and fans of both teams thronged the stadium with fervour. While England were expected to dominate the match and win at the Mecca of Cricket, it was the Women in Blue who proved everyone wrong with a landmark win, once again demonstrating the impressive growth of women’s cricket in the country.

The match started with India batting on the first morning and putting up an above-par first-innings score of 285/10 courtesy of half-centuries from opener Smriti Mandhana and captain Harmanpreet Kaur. 22-year-old Indian quick Kranti Goud then ran through the England batting order, taking her maiden five-wicket haul (5/37) in Test cricket to etch her name in history, becoming the first woman to have her name inscribed on the Lord’s Test bowling honours board as well as the youngest Indian woman to take a fifer. She was ably supported by Sayali Satghare (2/40) and Sneh Rana (2/41), as England were bowled out for a paltry 170, giving India a lead of 115 runs.

India then batted England out of the game, with Yastika Bhatia scoring her maiden Test century and, with help from Mandhana (70 off 130) and Richa Ghosh (50* off 52), leading the team to a massive total of 341/7, at which point captain Kaur declared the innings and set a mammoth target of 457 for England.

In response, England were bamboozled by Sneh Rana’s spin as she grabbed four wickets to help India win the contest by 270 runs. Rana bowled an incredible spell and was well supported by Kranti Goud, Sayali Satghare, and Deepti Sharma, all of whom took two wickets each.

England suffered a humiliating defeat at home, having been bowled out for a measly 186, with only Amy Jones and Sophie Ecclestone offering some resistance lower down the order with respectable fifties. Yastika Bhatia became the first female batter to have her name etched on the Lord’s Test batters’ honours board, marking an incredibly proud day for all Indian fans.

This game was further hyped on account of being the farewell match for England stalwarts Heather Knight and Tammy Beaumont, although it didn’t end up being as sweet a send-off as the team would’ve hoped for. Keeping up with the spirit of the game, the Indian team also gave the outgoing Englishwomen a guard of honour as a mark of respect. However, they didn’t shower any kindness on them during the match, inflicting a massive defeat and continuing their 11-match unbeaten streak (four wins, seven draws) against them in Tests over four decades.

The importance of this victory is immense. Although India have done well in England in the past, their last outing was a challenging one. The Women in Blue struggled massively in 2021 in their last one-off Test in England at the County Ground in Bristol, where they were dominated for most of the game but miraculously drew it thanks to a match-saving 104-run partnership between Sneh Rana (80*) and Taniya Bhatia (44*). At the time, it was considered an enormous moment for the team, as they were able to save face despite being completely outplayed with both bat and ball.

In contrast, India played the entire Lord’s Test on the front foot, relentlessly applied pressure on the opposition both while batting and bowling, and outplayed them on all fronts. Both these results show a stark contrast in the team’s confidence, self-belief, and skill level, demonstrating how dominant and fearless they have become over the past few years.

This historic Test match was evidence of the fact that women’s cricket players can just as well compete over several days. It’s not a matter of skill level or stamina that prevents them from engaging with the opposition in the extended format; it’s the lack of opportunities.

It’s a pity that overseas Test matches arrive few and far between in women’s cricket. For context, the Women in Blue have played only two one-off overseas Tests in the last five years: one in Australia in Perth and the other one being this one against England at Lord’s. If this match is anything to go by, the skill and belief are definitely present. More matches in hostile conditions will only improve performances, improve match awareness to handle pressure situations, and build grit, resilience, and temperament in players, leading to remarkable growth.

History has definitely been made by India at Lord’s, and we hope to see our women’s team get more opportunities to deliver great results at other iconic grounds around the world. While we wait for that to happen, we are definitely going to savour this historic victory, assured of the fact that Lord’s will remember the names Kranti Gaud and Yastika Bhatia forever!