Alice Capsey 74 shines in seven-wicket England win

Collapse: Slumped to 35/5 at halfway and 75/7 later. Top scorer: Wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh 33 off 22 balls + Pooja Vastrakar 19_ off 11 lifted them to 122. England bowling: Spin did the damage. Sophie Ecclestone 3/25, Sarah Glenn 2/11, Bryony Smith 6 wickets between them. Early wickets: Shafali Verma 5, Smriti Mandhana 9, Sabbineni Meghana 0 all gone cheaply. Batting in unfamiliar territory as an opener, Capsey took control in England's pursuit of a modest target of 137 with a 51-ball 74 not out in which she cut, drove and at times muscled her way to three sixes and seven fours, seeing her side home with 16 balls to spare. Playing their first T20I for 10 months and missing captain Nat Sciver-Brunt to a calf injury, England were sharper in the field and their bowlers were on top from the start, from Lauren Bell's wicket with the first ball of the match to Linsey Smith's excellent figures of 1 for 10 from four overs including 15 dot balls. Opening stand: Sophia Dunkley 49 off 44 and Danni Wyatt 22 put on 70 runs. Wobble: Lost Wyatt, then Dunkley on 49, then Amy Jones 3 – stalled at 79/3. Capsey’s match-winner: Alice Capsey 38_ off 24 balls, 6 fours. Calm knock alongside Bryony Smith 13_ saw England home in 19th over. Captain Amy Jones: “She is so good, has all of the shots and plays so freely... very happy she is on our side”. Collectively they tied down the reigning T20 world champions, who apart from Sophie Devine's 22-ball 45 and a late 36-run stand off 33 balls for the sixth wicket between Maddy Green and Izzy Sharp, couldn't get going. Suzie Bates dropped to No. 9 as the White Ferns continue to plan for life beyond her retirement after the T20 World Cup. But she didn't get a chance to bat as Jess Kerr was run out off the last ball of the innings with her side 136 for 7. Stand-in captain: Amy Jones led with Nat Sciver withdrawn from camp. “It has been very different and quite daunting coming into the first game”. Capsey, 18: Considered one of England’s brightest young talents. Took 1/32 with ball too – dismissed skipper Harmanpreet. India’s effort: Bowlers put up valiant effort defending low total before Capsey held her nerve. Bottom line: After India’s batting imploded vs England’s spinners, Dunkley set platform and teenager Alice Capsey’s unbeaten 38* steadied the ship to seal the series 2-1 in Bristol. Devine hit back-to-back fours off Kemp, bowling for the first time since the Ashes in January 2025. Devine was lucky to get away with the second, smashed down the ground, but while Dani Gibson did well to get a hand to it running round from deep midwicket, she couldn't hold on. Another maximum for Devine, off Dean this time, had her on 40 off just 18 but Gibson bowled her soon after with one that stayed low and clipped the bails.