Katherine Brunt needed to defend six runs off the last over. The first ball was slightly short, and Mithali Raj cut for a single. At the other end, Sophie Ecclestone had taken out Sneh Rana with her last ball, so there was a new batter. Jhulan Goswami’s experience had earned her a promotion ahead of Taniya Bhatia and Shikha Pandey. She responded with a single to the on-side.
With four to score in four balls, Raj found a gift in her zone, an overpitched ball on off stump. Let alone while staying awake, she can put these away for four in her sleep. She did precisely that, and India won the ‘dead rubber’ contest to stay alive in the 16-point series. The scoreline now reads England 6, India 4.
Raj had left the ground with neck pain during the second ODI. She won the toss today, and came to bat at a relatively comfortable 66/2. India needed 154 in 187 balls at that point. Smriti Mandhana fell soon, after blazing her way to a 57-ball 49. But Raj kept her calm, adding 50 with Harmanpreet Kaur (16) and 33 with Deepti Sharma (18).
Even then, India needed a boost. They had to score 56 in 46 balls, and some calculated risks from Rana (24 in 22 balls) took India closer to home. Having brought the target to 6 from 7 balls, Rana then exposed her stumps, tried to sweep Ecclestone, and was bowled. Raj and Rana added exactly 50 in 40 balls. Having reached her fifty in 68 balls, Raj eventually finished unbeaten on an 86-ball 75. It was a beautifully paced innings from one of the titans of the sport.
Earlier, England had got off to a brisk start thanks to Lauren Winfield-Hill (36), Heather Knight (46), and Nat Sciver (49) after rain reduced the match to 47 overs a side. At 151/3 in 34 overs, England looked set for a score around 235 to 240, but Deepti Sharma (3-47) kept striking at regular intervals to hold England back.
England lost wickets in a heap towards the end. At 197/9, it seemed India had a chance of restricting England to under 200, but some expansive slogging from Kate Cross helped them reach 219.
Brief scores
England Women 219 in 47 overs (Nat Sciver 49; Deepti Sharma 3-47) lost to India Women 220/6 in 46.3 overs (Mithali Raj 75*; Sophie Ecclestone 2-36) by 4 wickets with 3 balls to spare. Player of the Match: Mithali Raj.
England Women win series 2-1. Player of the Series: Sophie Ecclestone.