A week for the history books

Day 1:

The sense of occasion was clear. Lifts had been wrapped with signage signifying the monumental week, boards with key milestones throughout the history of English women’s cricket were displayed in the media centre and on the walls of the ground. 10,763 came through the gates on the first day, many specifically because of the significance of the Test.

Former players were invited into the pavilion to celebrate 50 years since England first played on the main ground in 1976. Led by a spritely Enid Bakewell, legends of women’s cricket walked out to ring the bell on the outfield.

That morning, individual portraits of Enid Bakewell, Mary Duggan, Jan Brittin and Myrtle Maclagan as well as a group portrait of the 1993 World Cup winning team were unveiled in the Long Room.

“It was a really special day to be a part of, even having all the ex-players there for the anthems. Amy Jones turned to me and was like ‘it got me a bit emotional actually when they were ringing the bell’,” England seamer Issy Wong said after the first day.

“It’s because of them that we’re in the position to have special days like today.”

Among all the reflecting on the past there were also Test debuts for Alice Capsey and Mady Villiers, both who have accumulated white ball caps. For 21-year-old Capsey it was more of a case of when, than of if, as a regular in the England side. For Villiers however, it was a return to the international stage after grafting away at Durham for two seasons.

For others, it was a long-awaited return to the format, especially for those who hadn’t featured in the 2025 Ashes. Wong’s last and only Test match was her debut back in June 2022 against South Africa at Taunton.

“It's my favourite format. I absolutely love it. I love the ongoing nature of the battle. It's not slower, it’s just prolonged almost and I love that. I love that element of it,” she said.

“My dad has been looking after my Test cap and we didn't go home in between the World Cup and this and I realised I didn't have it on me, so he brought it to the World Cup final and had it in his bag. I've looked after mine a bit, but Heather Knight had a bit of mould on the inside of hers she had to scrape out.”

As Wong alluded to, many players hadn’t had the opportunity to head home after the World Cup with this match so soon after.

Lauren Bell struggled with the ball, her performance accurately reflecting the energy levels of most of the England side who just five days earlier were playing in a home T20 World Cup final. All the while, India were enjoying an extra week of red ball preparations with their premature exit from the competition.

Villers had her moment of brilliance, dismissing India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur with an exquisite delivery. It was Sophie Ecclestone though who took the headlines, becoming England women’s leading wicket taker of all time with the dismissal of Sayali Satghare.

India were all out for 285 but in England’s 40 minutes of batting, the outgoing Tammy Beaumont went for just two in her penultimate international innings.

Day 2:

England start play on day two on 21-1 with the game relatively in the balance but with a lot of work to do with the bat. Importantly, by lunch, England were 137/5 which ensured they avoided the follow on. It was, other than that detail, a very poor day for England with bat and ball.

22-year-old Kranti Gaud has produced some exceptional moments in her short career. In February 2025, she took her first WPL wicket as a non-internationally capped player, importantly the wicket of Australian great Meg Lanning. That same match, she recorded figures of 4/25, a nudge to India selectors. A few months later, Gaud ripped through England’s batters in Chester-Le-Street, taking 6/52 in just her fourth ODI.

On day two, she etched her name into the history books as the first women to get on a Test honours board at Lord’s. Gaud’s figures of 5/86 (5/37 at the time of the 5^th) included the wickets of Maia Bouchier (23), Tammy Beaumont (2), Nat Sciver-Brunt (44), Alice Capsey (9) and Lauren Bell (3) in her second ever Test match.

Gaud was one of the reasons as to why within an hour, the game, poised nicely, suddenly shifted in India’s favour.

While Gaud’s name may not carry the same stature as Harmanpreet Kaur or Smriti Mandhana, it’s a remarkable achievement by a bowler who, if the last two summer are anything to go by, will trouble England for many years to come.

Naturally, much of the conversation this week has been focused on England’s past and the opportunity to play in a Test match at Lord’s denied to generation after generation. Opposition have also been denied this opportunity. Thinking about India, the likes of Jhulan Goswami, Shikha Pandey and Mithali Raj, to name a few of the recent greats of the game, would have relished this chance.

Gaud seemed incredibly relaxed in the press conference at the end of play, sat with her sunglasses on (in an indoor squash court) and laughing. Gaud answered the questions in Hindi but from the brief word in English and her smile, she seemed pleased with what she’d done.

15,243 occupied the stands, a world record attendance for a single day of a women’s Test match. 15,243 people witnessed India show England how to bat. India were 154/1 at the close with Shafali Verma departing for 33 but looking like a fine Test batter. Smriti Mandhana was on 69 (124), looking destined for the honours board with Yastika Bhatia on 39 (73) at the other end.

In the post-match press conference of day two, on a dire day for England, Amy Jones insisted they could still win. Get early wickets and then dig in with the bat; if only it was that simple.

Lord’s started to lock up for the day, pieces filed and stands empty. Then, Heather Knight abruptly announced her retirement from international cricket…in the middle of a Test match.

The news itself was a surprise to nobody, the timing however caught everyone by surprise.

Day 3:

On another scorcher at Lord’s, proceedings got off to an almost perfect start. A brilliant delivery from Lauren Bell clipped the stumps, Bhatia surviving as the bails stayed firmly on.

With Mandhana falling for 70, it was Bhatia who edged closer to a milestone. Bhatia’s 50 was brought up with glorious straight drive down to the pavilion, ploughing through the first session.

After lunch, Bhatia punished back-to-back deliveries from Issy Wong, taking her to 99. Keeping composure, she eased into three figures becoming the first women to score a century in a Test match at Lord’s.

“This is going to be a turning point in your career” is what Smriti Mandhana said to Bhatia after rupturing ACL, ruling her out of the 2025 World Cup, which India went on to win. It’s clearly been a tough year for Bhatia who spoke about the child-like joy she experienced getting to just catch a ball and start keeping four months post-surgery.

Bhatia reaped the ultimate reward of the monotonous rehabilitation process.

For England, there were not many positives. Their bowling machine, Sophie Ecclestone, bowled 55.2 overs across the Test, taking a 5-fer in India’s second innings. It was an achievement in vain as the game had slipped far away from England by that stage.

Eventually declaring on 341/7, India had set England the impossible task of chasing 457 to win.

India fielders sprinted to do guard of honour for Beaumont and then for Knight. The news about Knight’s retirement loomed over the day, some perhaps feeling it left a sour taste given the timing.

Day 4:

Free entry was announced for day four with no promises of the game making it past lunch. A good few hundred came through the gates to watch the inevitable conclusion.

India legend Sachin Tendulkar led the team talk for India, finding his seat on the pavilion benches, another motivation for the side…not that they needed any more.

Amy Jones’ half century ensured her highest accumulative Test score of 106, 52 in the first innings and 54 in the second. These were also her first half centuries in Test cricket since her debut against Australia in 2019.

With Jones gone, it was up to the tail to negotiate a potential three sessions. Issy Wong and Lauren Bell fell in quick succession leaving Lauren Filer to keep Sophie Ecclestone on strike.

Ecclestone seemed determined to make it onto the honours board for the second time and pushed to her first 50 in an England shirt before she fell to Sneh Rana ahead of lunch to wrap up the game.

Every day had its moment for the record books, India winning the first Women’s Test match a Lord’s by 270 runs on the final day. The India fans, who have been the soundtrack for the English summer so far, celebrated with the team in front of the Grand Stand. The news too came out that the record had been broken for attendance at a Women’s Test match with 37,846 across the four days, a great success for the marketing team.

There’s collective exhaustion after a hectic T20 World Cup followed quickly by a Test match but it’s been a remarkable month for women’s cricket in England.