India vs England: Spinners take centrestage in series decider
It started with a 3-2 T20I series win and has now arrived at Chester-le-Street for one last dance with India and England going up against each other to win the three-match ODI series. England head coach Charlotte Edwards has enjoyed the hard-fought contests. "It's been a brilliant series, I think from the Trent Bridge game, which feels like a long time ago, to now, I think it's been really competitive. Obviously disappointed we lost the T20I series. But I think, once the ODIs come around, this is a really important prep in terms of the World Cup. It's all to play for now in Durham, which we're all looking forward to. I think you want to be part of these sort of must-win games to win the series," Edwards told this daily in a conversation facilitated by Sony Sports Network on Monday.
For England, the biggest challenge thus far has been tackling the Indian spinners. Contrary to the home side, Harmanpreet Kaur and Co have consistently fielded a spin-heavy side and reaped the results as well. It was evident during the T20Is and even more so in the first two ODIs. Out of the 71 overs India sent down across two games — the second ODI was a rain-curtailed one — 44 overs came from Rana, Sharma, Pratika Rawal and Charani. Each spinner has played a different role, bowling in different phases of the game. Rana feels that the communication between the trio has helped in terms of the planning and execution as she has taken three wickets in two games while operating at 3.3 runs per over.
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Time of India
an hour ago
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