England captain Amy Jones says patience will be needed with her young, inexperienced side after they suffered a crushing 88-run defeat against India, which sealed the tourists’ first one-day series win in England since 1999.
Jones, who is standing in as captain in the absence of the injured Heather Knight and Nat Sciver, who is taking a mental health break, warned that “with youth comes inconsistency” after the chastening loss in Canterbury.
Harmanpreet Kaur’s superb 143 not out laid the foundations for India, with England’s bowlers seemingly having no answer in the absence of the resting Katherine Brunt and recently-retired Anya Shrubsole.
“We are missing some huge players but we have definitely got a team that can beat sides like this,” Jones, 29, said.
“And we want to play positive cricket, and sometimes that lends itself to days where it might not always come off.”
| Batters | Bowlers |
| Tammy Beaumont – 31 | Freya Kemp – 17 |
| Emma Lamb – 24 | Sophie Ecclestone – 23 |
| Sophia Dunkley – 24 | Lauren Bell – 21 |
| Alice Capsey – 18 | Charlie Dean – 21 |
| Amy Jones – 29 | Kate Cross – 30 |
| Danni Wyatt – 31 |
Freya Kemp, 17, took 1-82 from her 10 overs, the most expensive bowling figures of all time for England in ODI cricket as India posted 333-5, the highest total England have ever conceded in the format at home.
England’s second-worst bowling figures in an ODI were also recorded as 21-year-old Lauren Bell returned 1-79 in a fielding display which saw England concede 24 wides.
“There are a lot of learnings that can come from this, and it will only make us better as a team,” said Jones.
‘Kaur’s innings will change women’s cricket in India’
Harmanpreet’s unbeaten 143 from just 111 balls secured a historic series win for India as they took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, with the final match at Lord’s on Saturday.
“I actually think we bowled really well for the first two-thirds of the innings, but she put us under a lot of pressure,” said Jones.
England’s young bowling attack struggled particularly at the end of India’s innings, as Harmanpreet struck her last 43 runs from just 11 balls, and 62 runs came from the final three overs.
“Naturally when the ball is flying all around the ground, there are times where you feel like it’s running away from you quickly,” added Jones. “But it was a very good learning opportunity for us.”
It was an innings similar to Harmanpreet’s match-winning efforts against Australia in the semi-final of the 2017 World Cup, when she struck 171. She offered England no chances, and punished them all around the ground.
“It is a huge achievement for the India team and they have deserved every bit of it,” said former India wicketkeeper Deep Dasgupta on BBC Test Match Special.
“We’ll remember that innings for a very, very long time. I have a feeling Kaur’s innings will change things for women’s cricket in India.”
