India's Mandhana stars in inaugural women's Test at Lord's

India opener Smriti Mandhana fell agonisingly short of becoming the first woman to score a Test century at Lord’s as the celebrated ground staged its inaugural women’s Test on Friday.

The elegant Mandhana made 83, with captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Deepti Sharma both contributing fifties as India made 285 against England on the opening day of four after losing the toss.

India seemed on course for a first-innings total in excess of 300 while Mandhana (83) and captain Kaur (58) were sharing a fourth-wicket partnership of 89.

But Mandhana’s exit, with wicket-keeper holding a fine catch standing up to the stumps after the left-handed opener edged fast bowler Issy Wong, sparked something of a collapse from 190-3.

Kaur was out to what became the last ball before tea when bowled by a superb off-break from England debutant Mady Villiers.

India lost their last four wickets for 11 runs as left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone (3-68) polished off the tail.

Before stumps, England opener Tammy Beaumont, who will retire from international duty after this match, was lbw to fast bowler Kranti Gaud’s inswinger for just two.

England were 21-1 at the close.

After 142 years — and 150 matches — of men’s Test cricket at Lord’s, this fixture represents another landmark in the evolution of the women’s game.

This Test is taking place 50 years after the first major women’s match at the London ground, a one-day international between England and Australia.

Members of the England team that day gathered on the outfield Friday to ring the five-minute bell signalling the start of play.

In contrast to their 1976 predecessors, England were playing their second match at Lord’s in under a week following their defeat by arch-rivals Australia in Sunday’s T20 World Cup final — with India knocked out of the tournament by the eventual champions in a group-stage game at the ‘Home of Cricket’.

Fifty years ago, women were not allowed to walk through the Long Room and still decades away from becoming members of Marylebone Cricket Club, the owners of Lord’s.

On Friday the teams were cheered to the echo as they made their way through the centrepiece of the pavilion before taking the field for the pre-match anthems.

‘Amazing feeling’ 

“It is an amazing feeling to play a Test match here,” Sharma told reporters after stumps. “Women’s cricket has grown a lot in the last four to five years.”

In a feat women cricketers of the amateur era could scarcely have envisaged, Friday’s match meant Mandhana became the youngest women to feature in 300 international games across all formats at the age of 29 years and 357 days.

After England won the toss, Shafali Verma fell for a duck, caught by a diving Jones off Lauren Filer.

Mandhana cover-drove Lauren Bell for several fours and later slog-swept Ecclestone for six during a run-a-ball fifty.

“I think she batted really well,” said Sharma of Mandhana. “Sometimes a few players got out early and someone has to take that responsibility. I think she showed her character today.”

Wong, who took 2-41 in 12 overs, said England had had a decent day too.

“When you win the toss and bowl, getting yourself into a position where you bowl the opposition out before the end of play is a really good effort,” she said.

Kaur — in just the eighth Test of her long career – carved Bell through point for four and swept Villiers for another boundary.

In the build-up, the 37-year-old India great said a women’s Test at Lord’s was “late but not too late” and Kaur marked the occasion with a well-made fifty off 99 balls including six fours.

When Ecclestone struck for the first time to have Sayali Satghare lbw, that passed the previous England record of 335 multi-format international wickets set by retired fast bowler Katherine Sciver-Brunt — the wife of current England skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt.

Only the India duo of Sharma (357 wickets) and Jhulan Goswami (355) are ahead of Ecclestone in the all-time list.