Shree Charani rewarded for T20 World Cup heroics, earns maiden Test cap at Lord’s
From dominating batters in the shortest format to receiving her maiden Test cap at the Home of Cricket, Shree Charani’s remarkable rise reached another milestone on a historic day for women’s cricket.
ENG vs IND, Only Women’s Test Day 1: Updates | Scorecard
The left-arm spinner made her Test debut as India took on England in the first-ever women’s Test at Lord’s. In a memorable moment before the start of play, Charani received her cap from vice-captain Smriti Mandhana, marking the beginning of a new chapter in her international career.
Lord’s, which has hosted men’s Tests since 1884, staged a women’s Test for the first time, 50 years after welcoming its first women’s international fixture.
SHREE CHARANI REWARDED
Charani earned her place in the side after a record-breaking Women’s T20 World Cup campaign, emerging as India’s standout bowler. The spinner finished the tournament with 14 wickets from five matches, the most by an Indian in a single edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup, which also propelled her to the No.1 T20I rankings among bowlers.
The 21-year-old eclipsed Poonam Yadav’s previous Indian record of 10 wickets, set during India’s run to the final in 2020. Charani finished second on the all-time list for most wickets in a single Women’s T20 World Cup, behind New Zealand captain Amelia Kerr, who claimed 15 wickets in the 2024 edition.
India also welcomed back Yastika Bhatia to the Test side after more than two and a half years. The wicketkeeper-batter had missed the Chennai Test against South Africa in 2024 and the Perth Test against Australia earlier this year.
England, meanwhile, won the toss and elected to bowl first. The hosts handed maiden Test caps to Mady Villiers and Alice Capsey.
Playing XIs for England vs India Lord’s Test
India Women (Playing XI): Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh(w), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Sayali Satghare, Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud
England Women (Playing XI): Tammy Beaumont, Maia Bouchier, Heather Knight, Nat Sciver-Brunt(c), Alice Capsey, Amy Jones(w), Mady Villiers, Sophie Ecclestone, Issy Wong, Lauren Bell, Lauren Filer
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