For all that women’s cricket has achieved in the past decade, the long-standing anomaly of never having staged a women’s Test match at Lord’s—the iconic ‘Home of Cricket’—was finally corrected in 2026, exactly 142 years after the inaugural men’s Test match was held at the venue in 1884. Now, on the 13th of July, 2026, that historic first women’s Test at Lord’s has drawn to a close. The landmark clash between India and England ended with the visitors claiming a significant, dominant 270-run victory.
The clash between the two countries was only the 153rd women’s Test match ever played since the format’s inception in 1934—a number that remains glaringly low given the game’s recent growth. Even more telling of cricket’s deep-seated gender disparity is the historic venue’s timeline: it took exactly 150 men’s Test matches for Lord’s to host a single women’s Test, before a single women’s Test was permitted at what is widely regarded as the ultimate institution of cricket.
The match between England and India began on the 10th of July, with the England skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt choosing to bowl. With India sent in to bat, they found themselves in trouble. Shafali Verma fell for a duck, and behind her, Yastika Bhatia too fell for just 12 runs off 17 balls.
However, Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues steadied the ship with a partnership of 64 runs off 72 deliveries. Further, Mandhana built another partnership with skipper Harmanpreet Kaur after Rodrigues fell for 35 (38). Kaur and Mandhana added 89 runs off 155 deliveries.
India posted 285/10 on day 1, with Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Deepti Sharma all scoring fifties. From England’s side, Sophie Ecclestone was their best bowler as she claimed three wickets in India’s first innings.
On stumps on Day 1, England had scored 21 for the loss of one wicket and were trailing by 264 runs. However, day 2 brought new trouble for England, which would ultimately decide the fate of the remaining match.
The hosts managed to score only 170, with only Nat Sciver-Brunt scoring 44(85) and Amy Jones supporting with a gritty 52 off 62 balls. It was during England’s first innings when Kranti Goud became the first woman to get her name etched on the Lord’s Test Honours board. She claimed 5 wickets for 37 runs, scripting history.
With Kranti scripting England’s tumble, India had a good lead of 115 runs in their hands, and they utilised it completely. India was leading by 269 at the end of day 2, thanks to a solid start given by Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana as they both piled up 88 runs off 124 deliveries.
On day 3, India continued their onslaught as Mandhana built another partnership (73 off 144) with Yastika Bhatia; the latter went on to score not only her first international hundred but also became the first woman to score a hundred in test cricket at Lord’s. Bhatia scored 113 runs off 158 deliveries.
Yastika Bhatia and Deepti Sharma wove a partnership of their own (52 off 77). Richa Ghosh also scored a 50, adding to the score. India declared at 341/7, giving the hosts a mountain of 457 runs to chase.
But while India was piling up this massive target, Sophie Ecclestone scripted her own history, becoming the first English woman to have her name on the Lord’s Test honours board after picking up 5 wickets for 118 runs.
By day 3, when England started their chase, things looked disastrous for them. They lost wickets quickly, starting with Tammy Beaumont, who went for a golden duck in her last international match. After Alice Capsey’s wicket, the hosts stood at 59/5. However, a masterclass in resilience followed. Amy Jones (54) took it upon herself to weather the storm by building a partnership with the debutant, Mady Villiers (26) and led England to day three stumps at 130/6.
On day 4, even though Jones fell early, Ecclestone took the ship forward, scoring a maiden Test half-century (50). The trio’s efforts took an English side which was in shambles at 59/5 to a respectable, fighting finish of 186 all out.
What England lacked on their end was long-lasting partnerships, which eventually cost them the historic game. However, it is worth noting that the fight shown by Jones, Villiers, and Ecclestone gave them a far more respectful loss.
The ending of this test match also marked the end of Heather Knight and Tammy Beaumont’s international careers. While the two English stalwarts didn’t receive the fairytale ending they would have liked, their legacy and impact will be long-lasting. Both of them received a guard of honour from the Indian team as they walked off the ground for one final time.
Skipper Nat Sciver-Brunt, when speaking on Beaumont and Knight’s retirement, said, “They have been a huge part of my whole career. Going to be a bit weird without them around. Heather, having taken over captaincy from here…hugely privileged position to be taking on that mantle and taking it further. Such a huge part of our team, and they have so much to be proud of. Proud to be a part of their experience and of the people they are.”
Further, speaking on where England fell short against India, Sciver-Brunt stated in the post match presentation, “On the first morning, we probably didn’t adapt to the conditions as well as we could have, struggled to find our length. But once we started hitting that, I think we were really in the game. And then I suppose the fact we just didn’t have enough partnerships together.”
Harmanpreet Kaur, the Indian captain, speaking about India’s performance during the post-match presentation, stated, “The last couple of series have not been in our favour. I want to give credit to the support staff. This summer did not go the way it wanted, but we came back strongly in the Test match.”
“Playing at Lord’s is always special. Really want to thank people who thought about bringing the match here, and hopefully we will get more here. Hopefully we will get ten more Test matches, and we can keep performing.”
Lastly, speaking about becoming the first woman to have her name on the Lord’s honours board, Kranti Goud said, “I never thought about it but the day the match started, I wanted to get my name written on the honours board.”
