Southampton witnessed a memorable night of women’s cricket as Deepti Sharma pulled off an unbeaten 62 off 64 balls, guiding India to a thrilling four-wicket victory over England in the first ODI. Chasing a target of 259, India crossed the finish line with 10 balls left, thanks in large part to Deepti’s cool-headed innings and her now-viral one-handed six that echoed the style of Rishabh Pant.
India’s run chase was hardly straightforward. Early contributions from Partika Rawal (36) and Harleen Deol (27) steadied the ship, but it was the partnership between Deepti Sharma and Jemimah Rodrigues that truly shifted momentum. The duo stitched together an 87-run stand for the fifth wicket, with Jemimah falling just short of a half-century—she made a composed 48 off 54 deliveries, including five boundaries.
The real fireworks, though, were reserved for the 38th over. Facing Lauren Bell, Deepti unfurled a stunning one-handed six over midwicket—a shot she later credited to Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant. “I play these shots in practice; I picked that up from Rishabh Pant,” Deepti said at the post-match presentation. She also noted her emphasis on building partnerships and consistently scoring at a rate of 5-6 runs per over with Jemimah.
England’s bowlers put up resistance, with Charlie Dean emerging as their most successful bowler (2/52), while Kate Cross, Sophie Ecclestone, and Lauren Filer picked up a wicket each. But after Jemimah departed and Richa Ghosh fell early, Amanjot Kaur (20* off just 14 balls) joined Deepti to see India home comfortably.
Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur heaped praise on both the bowlers and Deepti Sharma for their performances. “Great feeling, credit goes to our bowlers and then the way Deepti played was brilliant,” Kaur remarked. She also admitted India may have let England score 20–30 runs extra but was confident in her batters’ ability on what she described as “a good wicket to bat on.”
Despite missing some top players this series, Team India continues to show depth and resilience. And with match-winning knocks like Deepti’s—complete with crowd-pleasing shots inspired by cricket’s brightest stars—the future looks bright for Indian women’s cricket.
