Quantcast

Late collapse hands England WWC title

India lose their last seven wickets for 28 to hand England a nail-biting victory at Lord's

The result: England 7-228 (Sciver 51, Goswami 3-23) defeated India 219 (Raut 86, Shrubsole 6-46) by nine runs.

The match in a tweet: Anya Shrubsole enters cricket folklore with five wickets and a run out in 19 balls to see England claim their fourth Women’s World Cup by just nine runs! #WWC17Final

The hero: Anya Shrubsole, take a bow! With only 37 runs required and seven wickets in hand, India were seemingly home and hosed. But the England vice-captain stepped up and delivered stuff that legends are made of, claiming the last five wickets and a run out inside 19 balls to single-handedly deliver England’s fourth title. She finished with figures of 6-46 to enter into cricketing folklore.

Shrubsole does it all as India lose 7-28

Where the game was won: India were cruising towards a maiden title with Punam Raut nearing a second century of the tournament and with only 37 runs to win, but England had other ideas and willed themselves back into the contest, claiming the next four wickets for just 10 runs. England spinner Alex Hartley broke through twice at just the right time just when the hosts needed a wicket, before Shrubsole stepped up and claimed back-to-back scalps to see her side rip the momentum out of India’s hands. From there India crumbled, unable to get the final 10 runs as England suffocated the scoring, eventually home in a nail-biter.

Goswami goes gangbusters: In what will be her final World Cup game, 34-year-old Jhulan Goswami took the new ball and gave her side the perfect platform, providing the key for India to restrict England to a very-attainable score of 7-228. She removed the dangerous Sarah Taylor and then had Fran Wilson trapped in front the very next ball to rock the hosts, but her biggest breakthrough came as a ball Natalie Sciver tried to dispatch to the leg-side stayed low, catching her in front of middle stump. A brilliant spell from Goswami of three wickets in ten balls for just two runs both removed England's set batter and exposed their tail.

Innings wrap: Goswami restricts England to 228

Kaur Blimey: After yet another Smriti Mandhana failure and a shock run out of Mithali Raj, India needed steadying, which came via Punam Raut and Harmanpreet Kaur. The two batters sat together for more than 22 overs and compiled 95 runs, combining for seven boundaries and three sixes with England having no answers for the pair. Kaur – coming off a match-winning unbeaten-171 from 115 balls – was in sublime touch again, highlighted by a lofted-drive for six off Alex Hartley that epitomised her innings. She was undone by the orthodox spin of Hartley, but her contribution of 51 had India well on their way to victory.

The giant slayer: Alex Hartley told cricket.com.au on the eve of the final that she wanted the opportunity to knock over the big names in the pressure moments - and she definitely delivered. The spinner knocked over India’s most dangerous batter, Harmanpreet Kaur, before bowling Sushma Verma around her legs when the situation begged for a wicket. She gave the batters no swinging room, frustratingly efficient in a time where India were searching for free-flowing scoring. The 23-year-old set up the pins before Anya Shrubsole played the match of her life and knocked them down, Hartley a World Cup champion in just her 17th ODI.

Missed chances don't hurt England at Lord's

ENGLAND: Lauren Winfield, Tammy Beaumont, Sarah Taylor (wk), Heather Knight (c), Natalie Sciver, Fran Wilson, Katherine Brunt, Jenny Gunn, Anya Shrubsole, Laura Marsh, Alex Hartley

INDIA: Punam Raut, Smrti Mandhana, Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Veda Krishnamurthy, Shikha Pandey, Sushma Verma (wk), Jhulan Goswami, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav