India batter Yastika Bhatia created history on Sunday by becoming the first woman cricketer to score a Test century at Lord’s, registering a magnificent 113 against England in the one-off Test and earning a place on the iconic honours board at the ‘Home of Cricket’.
The left-handed batter became the first woman to register a Test hundred at Lord’s since women’s Test cricket began at the historic venue. With the milestone, Bhatia joined an elite list of Indian batters, including Vinoo Mankad, Dilip Vengsarkar, Mohammad Azharuddin, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane, who have scored Test centuries at the venue.
Resuming Day 3 on an overnight score of 39 not out, Bhatia batted with composure and elegance to bring up her maiden Test century off 145 deliveries. She reached the landmark with a crisp drive through extra cover and celebrated with an emotional punch of the air.
Her innings of 113 was studded with 14 boundaries before she was caught at extra cover while attempting to loft England spinner Sophie Ecclestone. Bhatia received a standing ovation from the Lord’s crowd and members of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), while England players applauded her historic achievement as she walked back to the pavilion.
The century marked a memorable comeback for Bhatia, who returned to international cricket earlier this year after recovering from knee surgery. She had opened the England tour with a half-century in the first T20 International before producing the biggest innings of her Test career.
India’s second innings was also strengthened by a fluent 70 from Smriti Mandhana and an unbeaten half-century from Richa Ghosh, helping the visitors declare at 341/7 and set England a challenging target of 457 runs.
Earlier in the match, India pacer Kranti Gaud had also etched her name on the Lord’s honours board by becoming the first woman to claim a five-wicket haul in a Test at the venue, finishing with figures of 5/37 in England’s first innings.
England spinner Sophie Ecclestone also secured a place on the honours board after returning figures of 5/118 in India’s second innings. She became the first England woman to register a Test five-wicket haul at Lord’s and finished with eight wickets in the match.
At stumps on Day 3, England were struggling at 130/6, still requiring 327 runs for victory with only four wickets remaining, leaving India on the brink of a memorable Test win at Lord’s.
-ANI
