Key events
WICKET! Gautam run out (Gardner) 43 (India 214)
Hmmm, perhaps Gautam got caught up in the moment of stepping to leg and reflex hooking a Sutherland slower ball bouncer. She takes a single from the opening delivery of the over, inviting India’s No 11 to survive five deliveries. She survives two handily, but on the second the ball is hit straight to Gardner at mid-on. She spots Gautam miles out of her ground backing up and calmly underarms a direct hit to end the innings.
48th over: India 212-9 (Gautam 41, Renuka 0) What has Gautam got in these final throes? A massive six over cow corner is what! Bosh! Then she pilfers a couple of byes as she keeps control of the strike. A mistimed pull lands safely, giving Renuka just one ball to defend – which she does. India continue into the 49th over.
47th over: India 203-9 (Gautam 35, Renuka 0) Just two singles and the wicket from Schutt’s ninth over.
WICKET! Charani c Voll b Schutt 2 (India 203-9)
Schutt does her thing and Charani slaps a lusty blow into the safe hands of Voll on the midwicket fence. Her catching has been a real highlight of the afternoon.
46th over: India 201-8 (Gautam 34, Charani 1) Charani, like Gaud before her, doesn’t seem interested in simply rotating strike to bring the set batter to the crease. Finally Gautam does gets back on strike and immediately slog-sweeps Gardner for four.
WICKET! Gaud c Molineux b Gardner 2 (India 196-8)
Gaud’s grisly ten ball stay ends attempting another massive hoick, this time top-edging to Molineux at short third. Gardner has three.
45th over: India 196-7 (Gautam 30, Gaud 2) Healy persists with Schutt’s pace and she beats Gaud’s attempted slogs four times in a row with a mixture of pace, bounce, and cutters. Eventually India’s No 9 decides to play tip and run to bring Gautam on strike but there’s no communication… and Gaud may have run herself out in the process! She gets back close to her ground with time to spare, but instead of sliding her bat to safety she plants it bang on the line, saved only by her spikes following through shortly afterwards, but that was a review that required the third umpire to make a judgement call based on a frame that perhaps never existed. An over of awful batting ends with Gaud pinching strike!
44th over: India 195-7 (Gautam 30, Gaud 1) That’s the seventh time Gardner has snared Harmanpreet in international cricket and it will go a long way to stalling India’s momentum late in their innings. Voll’s catch improves with every replay.
WICKET! Harmanpreet c Voll b Gardner 53 (India 193-7)
Healy returns to spin as India launch their late assault – and it proves an inspired decision! From her second legal delivery Gardner has Harmanpreet caught in the deep slog-sweeping. It is a magnificent catch, by the diving Voll on the midwicket rope.
43rd over: India 191-6 (Harmanpreet 53, Gautam 29) India are starting to look for more shots now, including Harmanpreet scooping Schutt for a couple and Gautam holding her form for a powerful straight six! That was a beautiful strike to bring up the 50 partnership from 56 balls.
42nd over: India 181-6 (Harmanpreet 50, Gautam 22) Sutherland’s changes of pace are superb, denying India any timing. Harmanpreet can only deal in singles, including the 36th of a grinding innings, to bring up her 50.
41st over: India 179-6 (Harmanpreet 49, Gautam 21) Megan Schutt returns for her second spell, fully 30 overs after she completed her brilliant first. There’s still plenty of movement on offer for the veteran, beating the set Harmanpreet with a wicked in-ducker. Then she’s unlucky a lusty swipe from the Indian skipper clips the outside edge and runs away for four down to third.
40th over: India 172-6 (Harmanpreet 44, Gautam 20) Sutherland continues to excel with her changes of pace, keeping India to just three singles.
39th over: India 167-6 (Harmanpreet 42, Gautam 17) Drop! McGrath makes an awful mess at mid-off as Gautam skews a lofted drive that pops in and out of the fielder’s hands. She was never set. King has to accept that her tremendously entertaining ten over spell ends with figures of one, not two, for 43.
38th over: India 164-6 (Harmanpreet 40, Gautam 16) Sutherland gets another chance, this time interrupting Molineux’s spell, presumably to avoid Gautam getting her eye in after her assault of the previous over. And she bowls a superb assortment of pace and off-pace to befuddle both batters and restore some control to proceedings.
37th over: India 162-6 (Harmanpreet 39, Gautam 15) India are going boundary crazy! Harmanpreet gets in on the act, profiting from a rare King full toss and dispatching it through midwicket. Gautam then misses a reverse sweep and the ball kicks off the pitch into her grille which prompts a brief concussion protocol intervention.
36th over: India 156-6 (Harmanpreet 34, Gautam 14) Gautam steps to leg and out of nowhere slaps Molineux over cow corner for the most unexpected six! She follows that up by another swept four well in front of square! Just as I was about to revisit Harmanpreet’s tactic of rotating the strike and accepting easy singles early in the over.
35th over: India 145-6 (Harmanpreet 33, Gautam 4) Sutherland is only afforded one over as King is recalled by Healy to spin out India’s tail. But neither bowler nor captain could have expected Kashvee Gautam to get off the mark with a faultless sweep hammered in front of square leg for four. A couple of near misses thereafter but an LBW shout was declined for pitching outside leg then the batter just avoided an outside edge as they hung their blade out to dry.
34th over: India 140-6 (Harmanpreet 32, Gautam 0) Molineux beats new batter Gautam in the air and off the pitch but she does well to anchor her back foot as Mooney whips off the bails in search of a stumping. The bowler is relentless though and the incoming skipper completes a wicket maiden.
WICKET! Ghosh c Voll b Molineux 23 (India 140-6)
Australia have a sixth! It’s too straight to cut but Ghosh goes for the shot anyway, cutting the metronomic Molineux low to Voll at backward point. India’s No 7 lacked timing throughout her innings but departs with a handy 23.
33rd over: India 140-5 (Harmanpreet 32, Ghosh 23) Healy wants to see what pace will do after a passage of spin from both ends, and Sutherland is soon beating the outside edge of Ghosh’s bat and almost knocking the off bail to the floor. But the batter survives and gets exactly what she’s looking for shortly afterwards, a full delivery, in the slot, that she can loft over long-on for a very welcome boundary, the first in about eight overs.
32nd over: India 132-5 (Harmanpreet 30, Ghosh 17) It’s now 43 balls since India’s last boundary. They can’t get Molineux away despite Ghosh’s delicate late-cutting and lap-sweeping.
31st over: India 130-5 (Harmanpreet 30, Ghosh 15) King is landing her stock ball exactly where she wants, which isn’t great news for India. Ghosh does her best to swipe her way out of trouble and connects with a couple of scoring shots.
30th over: India 126-5 (Harmanpreet 29, Ghosh 12) Just a single from Molineux’s second over. India don’t know whether to stick or twist. Harmanpreet needs to take control of this innings before it gets away from her side.
29th over: India 125-5 (Harmanpreet 28, Ghosh 12) Another swing and a miss from Ghosh, then a spinny top-edge that lands just wide of the diving Brown at backward point. King is among the most watchable bowlers in the sport.
28th over: India 122-5 (Harmanpreet 26, Ghosh 11) McGrath is indeed withdrawn from the attack and it’s Molineux who replaces her – and she strikes after just two balls! Left-arm around the wicket, pitching on middle, straightening, beating Ghosh’s defensive push and earning the umpire’s raised index finger. The batter reviews, and is reprieved when ball tracking suggests the delivery was bouncing over the bails. Nonetheless Australia are well on top of this contest. India have lost all momentum since Mandhana’s dismissal.
27th over: India 119-5 (Harmanpreet 24, Ghosh 10) Speaking of weapons, King has a massive LBW shout against Ghosh declined onfield so Healy sends it upstairs. It’s a magnificent legspinner, drifting towards leg stump then spinning and bouncing fiercely back towards the top of off stump. DRS doesn’t take long, revealing the ball pitched fractionally outside leg stump because of all that drift. Ghosh responds by aiming a huge mow but she connects only with fresh air as King weaves her magic. Changing tack, Ghosh plays off the back foot but then almost guides slip-catching practice to Healy, earning a couple down to third for her troubles. Undaunted she slaps a couple through the covers to round off an enthralling over.
26th over: India 114-5 (Harmanpreet 24, Ghosh 6) Ghosh is going hard early and she almost mistimes a drive to the diving Lichfield in the covers. McGrath gets out of an erratic over at the cost of just three singles. It might be time for a return to one of Healy’s strike weapons.
25th over: India 111-5 (Harmanpreet 22, Ghosh 4) Australia have blasted this game wide open with two quick hits. Not that Richa Ghosh seems to mind, striding in and drilling King through extra cover for four. She goes again a few balls later, misses, and the prodigious legspin beats everyone and runs away for four byes. Alana King making things happen, as usual.
WICKET! Deepti c Molineux b King (103-5)
One brings two! And it’s another top-edge down the legside. This time Deepti failing to control King’s extra bounce and sweeping the leggie straight to Sophie Molineux on the 45.
24th over: India 103-4 (Harmanpreet 22, Deepti 2) That wicket breaks the game wide open again for Australia. Mandhana looked set, ready to anchor India’s innings and launch a late assault. Over to Harmanpreet to steer her side to a score.
WICKET! Mandhana c King b McGrath 58 (India 100-4)
Massive moment in this match! McGrath is given a third over despite looking innocuous, and she repays Healy’s faith. It’s not a great delivery, angling down the legside from around the wicket, but Mandhana gets a top edge to it as she tries to help it on its way, and she picks out King’s safe hands at fine-leg.
23rd over: India 100-3 (Mandhana 58, Harmanpreet 21) King beats Harmanpreet with flight and dip but the Indian plays with such soft hands she’s able to adapt and survive. Then the skipper breaks the long streak of one-run scoring shots with a couple through mid-off after using her feet superbly to engineer some room.
22nd over: India 95-3 (Mandhana 55, Harmanpreet 19) This pair display much more intent to McGrath’s seamers, but still the scoreboard is advancing only in singles.
21st over: India 90-3 (Mandhana 53, Harmanpreet 16) King is putting plenty of energy into her deliveries but India are happy to be watchful, for now, minimising any risk.
20th over: India 87-3 (Mandhana 51, Harmanpreet 15) Tahlia McGrath curtails Gardner’s spell but she starts too short to Mandhana who pulls effortlessly from the crease for the single that brings up her half-century. The Indian opener started scratchily and offered plenty of half-chances to the cordon but is now looking in ominous form.