Key events
Here’s the official line from the BCCI on Harmanpreet’s injury:
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur has been rested for the first T20I against England Women in Nottingham as a precautionary measure following a head injury [not a hand injury as I reported earlier] sustained during the T20 Warm-up match against ECB Select XI. She’s being closely monitored by the medical team and is recovering well. Smriti Mandhana is leading the side in her absence”
No Charlie Dean. Hmmm. Is that a mossed trick? Sure, conditions in India are different to Nottingham – one of the better decks in the UK – but I’d be getting miles in the arms of all spinners ahead of a World Cup on the sub continent. Also, Dean v Mandhana seems like match-up I’d want if I were an England captain.
Teams
Tammy Beaumont and Sophie Ecclestone return. Two big players. Flier and Bell will tear in with seam and swing.
As expected Shafali Verma makes her way back to the top of India’s order. Harampreet is out with a head injury. Shree Charani, the left arm finger spinner, makes her debut
England: Dunkley, Wyatt-Hodge, Sciver-Brunt (c), Beaumont, Jones (wk), Capsey, Arlott, Ecclestone, Flier, Smith, Bell.
India: Mandhana (c), Verma, Deol, Rodrigues, Kaur, Ghosh (wk), Sharma, Yadav, Reddy, Rana, Shree Charani
England win the toss and bowl
A shouting Ravi Shastri gets us underway as Nat Sciver-Brunt opts for a chase.
She’s going with a ‘fairly heavy pace attack’. Juicy.
She says that selecting the side was “very difficult”.
Smriti Mandhana would have bowled first as well. Time for India to get things in order with a home World Cup around the corner.
Toss in a few minutes. Big question if Sophie Ecclestone will slot straight back into the side after a break. For my money she’s the best white ball bowler in the world. And is one of those rare power hitters who can tonk sixes from the word go. She simply has to play if she’s fit and in the right head space.
How great is this?! Anything that makes this beautiful sport more accessible in any way gets a boost on the OBO:
We’ve already been treated to an England v India epic this summer.
I love it men’s and women’s tours coincide with one another. It adds to the intrigue, narrative and bragging rights.
Not that this match serves as a side quest but worth a refresh on that cracking Test at Headinlgey:
Preamble
Daniel Gallan
Charlotte Edwards’ tenure as England coach has got off to a perfect start, winning all six matches against the West Indies across.
It might be too early to attach a suffix to this team (Chazball maybe?) but a 100% record is a 100% record. After the Ashes thumping, it’s job done so far.
India will provide a sterner test. The third-ranked team in both ODIs and T20Is have a clutch of star batters including the returning 21-year-old Shafali Verma who makes a comeback after falling out of favour during India’s sorry T20 World Cup campaign last year.
Their bowling stocks aren’t as well supplied and we could see a couple of new faces across the tour.
England will start as favourites on home soil but will know a slip in the opening game will open old wounds. Edwards and her skipper, Nat Sciver-Brunt, will want to lay down a marker early doors.
Will they continue to fly the flag of Chazball (I’m doubling down on the moniker), or will they slide back against decent opposition?
We’ll find out together.
Play starts at 2:30pm.
Toss and teams and other bits to come til then.
If you’d like to get in touch, drop me a line.
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