Mandhana, Harmanpreet lead from the front with crucial fifties

Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur both scored fifties to steer India to victory in a match where history was on the line.

Twin fifties lead the way

Mandhana set the platform with a composed half-century, and captain Harmanpreet finished the job with another fifty. Their experience steadied India through the middle and death overs. The win was significant for India — it marked a new milestone/record for the team. Hence "history takes centre stage. With both senior batters firing together, India showed depth in the batting. Mandhana’s flair + Harmanpreet’s finishing gave India control.

On a day of historic firsts, England's Lauren Bell duly bowled the first delivery in a women's Test at Lord's, before Lauren Filer claimed the first wicket. And, for a time during the afternoon session, while India's third-wicket partnership was bedding into its surroundings and recalibrating to the demands of a rarely-accessed format, it seemed inevitable that Smriti Mandhana would land the most coveted first of all - a place on the dressing-room honours boards, designated as of this morning as unisex, no matter what the weight of precedent might suggest.

Instead, on 83, Mandhana was lured outside her eyeline by an Issy Wong outswinger, and traipsed off with her own slice of the occasion unfulfilled. And yet, on this day of all days, it somehow felt apt that the wait was made to go on a little while longer. If, as is customary, the opening session of a Test can often be given to the bowlers, then this opening day was handed over to the mighty names of the past, whose endeavours have paved the way for the 22 names who made this final cut of history.

Enid Bakewell leads the tribute Enid Bakewell, 85, was front and centre. Still playing recreationally last week — she picked up a shin bruise from wicketkeeping. She had the honour of ringing the five-minute bell.50-year celebration. She was joined by veterans from England’s maiden ODI at the ground vs Australia in August 1976 — almost exactly 50 years ago.

Heyhoe-Flint could scarcely have imagined, back then, that her official portrait would preside over such an occasion from the Long Room wall, or that Bakewell herself would unveil her own painting on the morning of the match - one of six new additions to the MCC's collection, which at a stroke trebled the female inventory of one of the most famous private art galleries in the world.

Mary Duggan Still England’s leading wicket-taker in women’s Tests with 77 wickets at 13.49. A record that even die-hard fans might not have at their fingertips. Myrtle Maclagan A true pioneer. She took the first-ever women’s Test wicket in 1934 at Brisbane, and was also the first woman to take 100 Test wickets. Janette Brittin Maybe best known for the 1993 World Cup win — which was also marked in a separate art piece that day. Her record arguably deserves more recognition than she gets as a household name.

Before the close, England's bid for initial parity had taken a hit with the early extraction of Beaumont, trapped lbw by a Kranti Gaud inswinger for 2. She'll have another chance to bow out of her own mighty career on a higher note than that. But, simply to have made the cut that eluded so many before her will suffice as reward for now. It was that sort of a day at the game's grandest venue.

England 21 for 1 (Bouchier 17*) trail India 285 (Mandhana 83, Harmanpreet 58, Sharma 57) by 264 runs