“Got to know about it at the last moment’: Jadeja on Ashwin’s retirement

Nottingham, June 28 (IANS) Stand-in skipper Smriti Mandhana smoked her first century in the shortest format and left-arm spinner N Shree Charani grabbed a four-fer on debut as India defeated England by 97 runs, their heaviest defeat, in the first T20I to start the series with a massive win here on Saturday.

Mandhana became the first Indian woman batter to score a hundred in all three formats of the game as she hammered 112, the highest individual score in Women’s T20I for India, surpassing regular skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s 103 as India posted a massive 210/5 in 20 overs.

In reply, England were bundled out for 113 in 14.5 overs with Shree Charani claiming 4-12 in 3.5 overs. Spinner Deepti Sharma (2-32) and Radha Yadav (2-15) turned out to be able foil for her as India started the series with one of their best wins against England.

Asked to bat first by the England skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt, India made a superb start with Smriti and her opening partner Shafali Verma raising 77 runs for the first wicket partnership. Shafali was sent back by Em Arlott for 20 runs, but Mandhana went from strength to strength to score a century and helped the team to a big total.

With regular skipper Harmanpreet Kaur rested as a precautionary measure after suffering a head injury, vice-captain and left-handed opener Mandhana is leading the side in her absence.

Her 112 off 62 deliveries, in an innings laced with 15 boundaries and three maximums, powered India to a massive total of 210/5 in 20 overs, their highest total against England in T20 Internationals. Mandhana’s maiden T20 century on Saturday was the 14th time she has crossed the triple-digit mark in her career, with 11 tons in ODIs and two coming in the longest format. She is also the second Indian woman to score a T20 ton after regular skipper Harmanpreet Kaur.

Mandhana got good support from Harleen Deol, who missed her half-century by just seven runs. Mandhana and Harleen shared a 94-run partnership for the second wicket that set India up for a big total.

Mandhana completed her fifty off 27 balls (4×8, 6×2) and reached three figures off 57 balls, hammering 14 boundaries and three sixes in the process. Though Jamimah Rodriques failed to contribute anything to the score, Smriti Mandhana ensured India put up a big total.

Chasing the massive target, England women landed into trouble in the first over itself when Amanjot Kaur got Sophia Dunkley edging behind Richa Ghosh for seven. Deepti Sharma struck her first ball of the match when she had Danni Wyatt-Hodge caught by Harleen at short third as she attempted to work it leg-side. England slumped to 9/2.

Though Nat Sciver-Brunt and Tammy Beaumont tried to revive the innings with a 49-run partnership, the latter’s dismissal by Deepti for 10, followed by the early departure of Amy Jones (1) and Alice Capsey (5), Em Arlott (12) and Sophie Ecclestone (1) meant England slumped to 102/7.

Their skipper, Nat Sciver-Brunt, continued to wage a lone battle, reaching her fifty off 31 balls before she was out for 66 off 42 balls (4×10) as England folded up soon for 113, which incidentally was just one run more than what Smriti Mandhana scored.

Shree Charani got the key wickets of Capsey, Ecclestone, Nat Sciver-Brunt, and Lauren Bell to destroy England’s middle and lower-order batting.

With this win, India have taken a 1-0 lead in the five-match T20 series, followed by three ODIs.

Brief scores:

India Women 210/5 in 20 overs (Smriti Mandhana 112, Harleen Deol 43; Lauren Bell 3-27) beat England Women 113 all out in 14.5 overs (Nat Sciver-Brunt 66; Shree Charani 4-12, Deepti Sharma 2-32, Radha Yadav 2-15) by 97 runs.

–IANS

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Doha, Feb 19 (IANS) Former world no.1 Serbian great Novak Djokovic refrained from making excuses after his straight sets defeat to Matteo Berrettini at the Qatar Open, the ATP 500 event, and said the Italian played a master class match to outplay him

The Italian delivered a high-quality display to defeat the third seed Serb 7-6(4), 6-2 at the ATP 500 and record his first victory over a Top 10 opponent since January 2023. The loss was Serb’s first opening-round loss since April 2022.

Djokovic was competing for the first time since he retired from his Australian Open semi-final clash against Alexander Zverev in January with a hamstring injury.

“I didn’t have any pain or discomfort in that sense. I was outplayed by just a better player today. Yes, I wasn’t at my desired level, and it could be that I’m still not moving the way I want to move, but, I mean, I played without pain, so there is no excuse in that,” said Djokovic.

“He was just the better player. I think he played a master class match, to be honest, tactically, and served very well, so just a very deserved win from his side,” he added.

Djokovic, a two-time champion in Doha, won the gold medal in the Paris Olympics last season but was unable to add another title across the season. It was the first time since 2017 the 99 tour-level titlist did not clinch a major crown.

The 37-year-old holds a 7-3 record in 2025. Djokovic, who acknowledged in his post-match press conference that he will work with Andy Murray until at least the end of the clay swing, stated he is working hard to lift more trophies in the future.

“I am trying to improve my game, as everybody else. But my game is not going to change now. I’m not going to play serve and volley, maybe every once in a while, but my game is what it is, the core is going to be the same. I’m going to try to adjust depending on the surface that I play on and so forth.

“There are more injuries. Things are not the same as 10 years ago, 15 years ago. I still try to take care of my body on a daily basis, and it’s more challenging now, no doubt. I still try to do my very best, given the circumstances,” the 24-time major winner said.

Djokovic is next scheduled to play at the ATPMasters 1000 event in Indian Wells. The world No. 7 has triumphed five times in California.

–IANS

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Hubli, Feb 26 (IANS) Veteran opening batter Mayank Agarwal stood tall amid early turbulence, guiding Karnataka to 144/4 at Tea on Day 3 of the Ranji Trophy final after Jammu and Kashmir struck thrice in a devastating post-lunch spell before an unbroken 87-run partnership restored some balance to the contest.

Resuming at 35/1 after lunch in reply to Jammu and Kashmir’s imposing 584, Karnataka suffered immediate setbacks as the visiting seamers capitalised on the helpful surface. Sunil Kumar provided the early breakthrough of the session, removing the in-form Devdutt Padikkal with a delivery that found the edge, tightening Jammu and Kashmir’s grip on proceedings.

Auqib Nabi Dar then turned the match decisively in his side’s favour with a sensational spell that rattled Karnataka’s middle order. Having already dismissed KL Rahul before Lunch, Auqib produced two exceptional deliveries in quick succession to remove Karun Nair and Smaran Ravichandran off consecutive balls, leaving Karnataka reeling at 57/4 at the start of the second session.

His ability to extract late movement and maintain probing channels kept the batters under constant examination, as he finished the session with impressive figures of 3-30.

With Karnataka in danger of complete collapse, Mayank responded with an innings of composure and authority. Initially watchful against the moving ball, he gradually began to assert himself, using his feet effectively to negate the seam and swing and disrupt the bowlers’ rhythm. His approach allowed him to convert a period of survival into steady accumulation, bringing up a resilient half-century under pressure.

Shreyas Gopal provided valuable support at the other end, showing discipline and sound judgement to blunt Jammu and Kashmir’s attack. The pair rotated strike smartly and punished loose deliveries, slowly rebuilding Karnataka’s innings after the dramatic slump.

Mayank’s innings gathered momentum as he grew in confidence, finding boundaries with controlled drives and flicks while maintaining focus against Auqib’s persistent threat. There was a moment of tension late in the session when he was struck on the thigh and survived a review, but he remained unshaken, moving to an assured 86 not out at Tea.

The unbroken 87-run stand between Mayank and Shreyas, who was unbeaten on 25, has provided Karnataka with much-needed stability after the early damage. However, they still trail by a substantial margin and face the immediate challenge of avoiding the follow-on against a disciplined Jammu and Kashmir attack.

Brief Scores: Karnataka 144/4 (Mayank Agarwal 86*, Shreyas Gopal 25*; Auqib Nabi Dar 3-30) trail Jammu & Kashmir 584/10 (Shubham Pundir 121, Yawer Hassan 88, Sahil Lotra 72, Kanhaiya Wadhawan 70, Paras Dogra 70; Prasidh Krishna 5-98) by 440 runs.

–IANS

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