Seasoned India all-rounder Deepti Sharma said the first hour of the second day will be crucial, adding that the visitors will look to strike early and put England under pressure in the one-off women’s Test here.
Invited to bat, India posted 285 in its first innings, courtesy half-centuries from senior batters Smriti Mandhana (83), Harmanpreet Kaur (58) and Deepti (57). The visitors then removed opener Tammy Beaumont before stumps, leaving England at 21 for 1.
“Initial one hour is really important,” Deepti said after the end of the opening day’s play on Friday.
“I think the total is decent. If there were 20-25 more runs, there would have been an extra margin. But the earlier we take wickets tomorrow, the better it will be for us,” she added.
England left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone claimed three wickets, exploiting variable bounce and turn on the surface and Deepti expects the pitch to continue assisting the bowlers.
“The wicket is turning slightly and sometimes keeping low. The wicket is not the same. We have to be prepared when the ball can bounce and when it can stay low. Tomorrow will be a very important day for us.
“We will focus more on our bowling strength. Like today’s wicket, we were getting a slight turn. But sometimes, the ball was staying low and sometime there was bounce. It will help us tomorrow. But we have to focus on our right areas. We have to continue to bowl back-to-back.”
Deepti, who shared a crucial partnership in the lower-middle order, credited the top-order batters for laying the platform.
“It feels good that I was able to do this partnership at a crucial time. All credit goes to our 3-4 batters who gave a good start. Jemi (Jemimah), Hari di (Harmanpreet) and Smriti. They built the inning very well.”
Published on Jul 11, 2026
