England Women lose ODI series in India after defeat in Mumbai
Nat Sciver's 85 in vain as England Women fall 2-0 down in three-match series; Smriti Mandhana hits 63 for India
Monday 25 February 2019 11:38, UK
England Women slumped with the bat again as India wrapped up an ODI series win with a game to spare following a seven-wicket victory in Mumbai.
England were dismissed for 161 - having been rolled for 136 in the opener - before the hosts reached their target in 41.1 overs to take an unassailable 2-0 lead and leave the visitors still waiting for their first series win in India.
Nat Sciver (85) managed to drag her side to a working total, scoring every run off the bat in an England-record 10th-wicket stand of 42 with a defiant Alex Hartley (0no from 17 balls) after the tourists were reduced to 119-9.
However, Smriti Mandhana (63), the top-ranked batter in women's ODIs, struck her 15th half-century as India eased to victory, the left-hander sharing fifty-plus partnerships with Punam Raut (32) and Mithali Raj (47no).
England had earlier fallen to 44-4 and then slipped from 93-4, with India seamers Shikha Pandey (4-18) and Jhulan Goswami (4-30) inflicting the damage at Wankhede Stadium.
Goswami removed Sarah Taylor (1) and Heather Knight (2) as England sunk to 14-3, while Pandey ousted openers Amy Jones (3) and Tammy Beaumont (20) and knocked over Katherine Brunt and Georgia Elwiss for ducks.
Sciver rallied, though - she was on 46 when Hartley came to the crease but progressed to an 11th ODI fifty and second against India before she was trapped lbw on the sweep by Goswami in the 44th over having struck 12 fours and one six in her 109-ball innings.
England's hopes were raised when Anya Shrubsole dismissed Jemima Rodrigues (0) in the second over of the chase, Jones with the running catch at backward point, but Mandhana and Raut then put on 73.
Raut was stumped by Taylor off Elwiss - Taylor completing her 50th ODI stumping to go with 50 in Twenty20 internationals - though Mandhana pressed on alongside Raj, the pair adding 66 before Mandhana was out lbw to a Shrubsole slower ball with 22 runs required.
Raj then thumped Elwiss over midwicket for the winning boundary, meaning England will hope for a consolation victory at the same venue on Thursday, before they play India in three Twenty20 internationals in Guwahati.
England captain Heather Knight: "It's really frustrating. We haven't shown what we can do this series. Losing three early wickets made it very hard for us. I think Sciver batted superbly. What an innings that was - she really didn't deserve to be on the losing side.
"She got us up to a score that made us think we were in with a sniff but when you're defending 160 you need a lot of things to go your way and unfortunately it wasn't to be.
"We've got one more ODI and it's not a dead rubber at all because there are ICC Women's Championship points up for grabs, so we really want to put in an improved performance.
"I know the way we've played is not through a lack of effort. The girls have trained brilliantly and put everything into the games."
