Richa Ghosh takes an all-timer (Source: @Crex_live/X)
Fielding at silly mid-off, Richa Ghosh produced a moment of magic with incredible reflexes on Sunday while playing for India Women against England Women at Lord's. The catch she took off Mady Villiers will be remembered for ages, and it could only be termed a āblinderā.
More significantly, the Richa Ghosh catch ended a gritty partnership between Mady Villiers and Amy Jones, who held the fort after England slipped to 59/5. Thanks to Richa, Sneh Rana broke the partnership when the scoreboard read 126/6.
Eventually, the umpires called it stumps on Day 3 with England hanging by a thread, posting 130/6. They still need 327 runs to win, while India only require four more wickets to register a historic victory at cricketās most prestigious venue.
Richa Ghosh Pulls Off A Screamer With Split-Second Reactions
Coming to bowl the 37th over of Englandās innings, Rana tempted Mady Villiers with a tossed-up delivery outside the off-stump. Villiers tried to punish it with a full-blooded cover drive.
However, Richa, who usually takes the big gloves behind the stumps, stayed low despite the ferocious hit. In fact, she kept her hands soft and held on to take a catch which will go down as one of the greatest catches in the womenās cricket, if not overall.
Also Read: England Legend Takes Retirement From International Cricket Amid India Series
Villiers was absolutely shocked to see how Richa turned a boundary into a wicket before slowly starting to return to the pavilion.
Watch the video below:
At this moment, Amy Jones and Sophie Ecclestone are in the middle for England, with Issy Wong, Lauren Bell, and Lauren Filer still to come. For India, Sayali Satghare, Kranti Gaud and Sneh Rana took two wickets each in Englandās second innings.
How India Dominated England At Lord's
Batting first, India rode on Smriti Mandhanaās fine 83 to get off to a good start. Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur and Deepti Sharma provided significant support as India posted 285 on the board.
Coming to bowl, India restricted England to 170, with Kranti Gaud making headlines with a spectacular five-wicket haul. Sayali Satghare and Deepti were impressive there as well, taking two wickets apiece.
Only captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, wicket-keeper Amy Jones and Maia Bouchier made 20 or more runs in the innings, while the rest fell like a pack of cards.
India then increased their lead in the second innings, with Yastika Bhatia smashing a historic century to make it happen. Smriti Mandhana shone with the bat once again, making 70 runs with the bat, while Richa Ghosh remained unbeaten on 50 while playing only 52 balls.
India, eventually, declared on 341/7, to set an improbable target for England.
For England, star bowler Sophie Ecclestone starred with the ball in the second innings, picking up five wickets alone. Lauren Bell took two other wickets.
Also Read: From Prince Yadav To Prasidh Krishna: Which Pacer Deserves A Spot Against England In ODIs?
