England 171-6 (Jones 64, Sciver-Brunt 57, Patil 2-29)
India 166 all out (Ghosh 68, Smith 3-42, Dean 2-16)
England won by five runs
Cardiff – A five-run margin felt about right after an afternoon that gave both camps almost everything they wanted from a last T20 tune-up. England walked off with the win; India left knowing they were one solid partnership away from chasing 172 with plenty to spare.
Amy Jones, opening, kept the board moving from the off. Her 64 from 45 balls included a couple of trademark scoops and forced India’s seamers to keep pulling their length back. “It was handy to stay out there for a while – the pitch got flatter the longer we batted,” she noted later. That steady start allowed Nat Sciver-Brunt, short of time in the middle recently, to bed in before switching gears. Her 57 (45) anchored the innings, though a mini clatter – three wickets for 23 – handed momentum back to India.
Enter Dani Gibson. The all-rounder’s 30* off just 12 balls – four crisply struck fours and a pick-up six – lifted England well beyond 160. It proved decisive.
India again experimented. Shafali Verma bowled the opening over, Renuka Thakur leaked 44, and leg-spinner Kranti Gaud mixed in the occasional dipping full toss that still found a way to worry England’s middle order. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur returned after sitting out the first warm-up, but her side were soon 13-2 once Smriti Mandhana nicked behind and Verma dragged on.
The chase never looked dead, largely because Richa Ghosh refused to let it be. Walking in at 53-4, she peppered the leg side, nine fours and two sixes taking her to 68 from 36. At one stage India needed 33 from the last three overs; Ghosh sliced that to six off three before charging Linsey Smith and being stumped. Smith, entrusted with the last over rather than one of the front-line quicks, finished with 3-42 – figures flattered by that final intervention.
Alice Capsey, not Jones, kept wicket for England – a nod to squad flexibility if nothing else. Lauren Bell, Jemimah Rodrigues, Heather Knight and a handful of others were rested on either side, coaches preferring one last look at bench options.
Both squads now shift to Birmingham. England open the World Cup against Sri Lanka on 12 June; India meet Pakistan two days later. If today’s slightly scruffy, highly watchable run-chase is any guide, neither camp will complain about where they stand.
