Indian off-spinner Deepti Sharma delivered another crucial breakthrough, dismissing England wicketkeeper Amy Jones through a bizarre dismissal on day two of the one-off Test in Navi Mumbai on Friday, December 15.
It was a delivery on the shorter side from Deepti that Jones tried to play through the mid-wicket off her back foot. She hit the ball straight on the helmet of Smriti Mandhana at short leg. The ball lobbed off the helmet and Shafali Verma completed a simple catch at leg-slip.
The Indian fielders and bowler Deepti Sharma couldn't believe their luck as they were ecstatic to get another wicket. Amy Jones, meanwhile, could only trudge back to the pavilion in disbelief.
Here's a video of the dismissal:
Deepti Sharma bags sensational fifer in England's almighty collapse
India posted a mammoth 428 on the board in their first innings and it was up to the visitors to show some fight with bat in hand. Nat Sciver-Brunt once again was the standout batter for England and at 108/3, it seemed like they were building on something pretty huge.
However, Deepti Sharma was introduced in the attack and she began to make inroads with the wickets of Danny Wyatt and Amy Jones. Deepti also dismissed Sophie Ecclestone, Kate Cross and Lauren Filer to complete her maiden five-wicket haul.
Sneh Rana played a brilliant supporting role, trapping Charlotte Dean in front and then producing an absolute ripper to clean up Sciver-Brunt. England lost their last seven wickets for just 28 runs, getting bundled out for 136 handing India a huge lead of 292 runs.
The hosts had the chance to opt for follow-on, but they decided to bat again and pile more misery on the visitors. India could look to build their lead to around the 400-run mark and would like to give themselves enough time to bowl England out again.
Looking for fast live cricket scores? Download CricRocket and get fast score updates, top-notch commentary in-depth match stats & much more! 🚀☄️