Indore: In the immediate aftermath of India’s heartbreaking four-run defeat against England in a crucial 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup match at the Holkar Stadium on Sunday, star opener Smriti Mandhana stepped forward, openly acknowledging her role in the team’s unexpected collapse.
India had seemed comfortably in control, cruising at 234 for three in the 42nd over, chasing England’s total of 288 for eight. With Mandhana having scored a brilliant 88 off 94 balls and seven wickets still in hand, the hosts needed just six runs per over for victory. However, Mandhana’s dismissal, caught by Alice Capsey off Linsey Smith, triggered a dramatic shift in momentum. From that point, India managed a mere 50 runs from the final 52 balls, losing three more wickets.
With this magnificent comeback, England secured their spot in the semifinals. For India, whose World Cup journey is quickly unraveling, the path ahead is clear: they must win both their remaining matches against New Zealand on October 23 and Bangladesh on October 26 at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai to remain in contention for the knockout stages.
Hope flickered briefly in the final over, with 14 runs needed and Amanjot Kaur alongside Sneh Rana at the crease, but Linsey Smith expertly restricted them to just nine runs.
“It collapsed, everyone saw that. I think everyone’s shot selections at that time could have been better. It started from me, so I will take it on me that the shot selection should have been better. We just needed six runs per over, and maybe we should have taken the game deeper,” a visibly disheartened Mandhana stated after the match.
India’s captain, Harmanpreet Kaur, who herself scored 70 and built a vital 125-run partnership with Mandhana for the third wicket, echoed Mandhana’s sentiments, identifying the vice-captain’s wicket as the turning point. “I think Smriti’s wicket was a turning point for us, and I still think we had too many batters. I don’t know how things went the other way, but credit goes to England—they kept bowling well and getting wickets there,” Harmanpreet said during the post-match presentation.
Struggling to come to terms with faltering in a match they had largely controlled, Harmanpreet added, “It is bad because you have put in so much hard work and kept ticking the boxes till the end, but the last 5-6 overs didn’t go according to plan. That’s the worst, but definitely, it’s a very heartbreaking moment.” She emphasized the team’s fighting spirit: “We are playing good cricket; we are not giving up. But that last line we have to cross now because it’s been the last three games where we showed up with good cricket.”
Questions have also been raised regarding India’s team selection for this crucial encounter against England, specifically the decision to omit Jemimah Rodrigues in favor of pacer Renuka Singh Thakur, leaving India with one less specialist batter. However, Harmanpreet stood by her decision: “These things will keep going because I think things were under control when Smriti and I were batting. And I think Smriti’s wicket was the turning point for us. But still, we had Richa, Amanjot, and Deepti, who have won games for us in the past. But unfortunately, today we were not able to make it.”
It appears India’s lower order, particularly explosive wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh (who was out for a quick 8 off 10 balls), carries a significant burden for late-innings hitting. Mandhana, however, defended her teammates, who had previously rescued India in the tournament’s first two matches against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. “I mean, of course, Richa has been good for us, but I wouldn’t say it’s only dependent on her. We just needed 6.5 per over—it’s not like we needed nine. The finishing part was a lot to ask, but we’ve seen Amanjot Kaur do that in the WPL (Women’s Premier League), and Sneh Rana has been brilliant in the last few overs with the bat for us in the first three-four matches. We’ll all take it on ourselves that we could have done better in the last six overs,” she stated.
Despite India facing three consecutive losses, all against formidable ‘SENA’ (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) countries, Mandhana expressed confidence in her team’s ability to bounce back in their next clash against New Zealand on Thursday. “In cricket, nothing comes easy. For sure, the next match will be a virtual quarterfinal in terms of getting into the top four, and you don’t play cricket to have easy days. We’ll all take this in our stride. We all know where we could have done better and where we went wrong. If you’re playing a sport, you’re meant to have good days and bad days. It’s about how you take those bad days and move on,” she concluded.