Charlie Dean has said winning their ODI series against India would give England “great momentum” heading into the World Cup.
England lost the preceding T20 series against India but have an opportunity to win the ODI series after taking it to a decider, live on Sky Sports on Tuesday at Chester-le-Street.
The ODI series will be England’s last chance to impress on the international stage before September’s warm-up games in the run-up to the 50-over World Cup, which takes place in India and Sri Lanka, with Australia the defending champions having won their seventh title in 2022.
“I think it is massively important [to finish the series with a win],” Dean said.
“We are taking every game as it comes, but I think ultimately we want to win the series. It’ll put us with great momentum into the World Cup.
“We’ve still got a lot of time and a lot of cricket before then, but it’ll only help us.
“Losing the T20 series and the first game of the 50-over series was tough, so if we can win the series, it would be something special, and it would give a lot of the girls a lot of confidence going to India and playing some of the best teams.”
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India take the ODI series whitewash with a controversial ending that resulted in Deepti Sharma Mankading Charlie Dean.
A rain delay at Lord’s in the second ODI interrupted play, reducing the game to 29 overs, but Sophie Ecclestone’s 3-27 and Amy Jones’ unbeaten 46 off 57 balls led the hosts to an eight-wicket victory and levelled the series 1-1 after India won the opening game.
Dean is now adamant that England have learnt a lot from their mistakes, particularly after a 16-0 Ashes whitewash over the winter which exposed a difficulty performing under pressure.
“We’ve learned quite a lot in terms of how our bowlers stepped up at Lord’s. We were more disciplined, and I think ultimately that’s what set us up well,” she said.
“If we can just chain good balls together for as long as possible and really put pressure on the Indian side, because we know how skilful they are, then we’ll put ourselves in good stead.
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Highlights of the rain-affected second ODI between England and India at Lord’s.
“When we talk about this England team, we’ve seen bilateral series where we’ve done really well, and then when it comes to World Cup games or tournament cricket, we’ve maybe not had momentum or not been clinical in those pressure moments.
“So, any chance that we can emulate that in a bilateral series is perfect practice, and even if we don’t, we can take those learnings, keep getting better, and really set ourselves up, that’s the most important thing.
“Regardless of how the third ODI goes, we reflect and learn from whatever situation we end up in.
“We don’t want to be in losing situations, it’s brilliant that we can learn from that and grow and put partnerships together where previously we might have crumbled.”
Three years on from the infamous Mankad
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Following her part in a controversial finish to third ODI between England and India, Charlie Dean fakes a ‘Mankad’ on Northern Diamonds’ Linsey Smith in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy final.
It’s already been three years since that incident.
In 2022, Dean was run out at the non-striker’s end by Deepti Sharma, which led to India securing a 3-0 series sweep, with the England off-spinner leaving the ground in tears.
However, according to Dean, there is no bad blood between the teams anymore, and the incident is “water under the bridge.”
“I think we all had a bit of a giggle in the changing rooms before the game,” Dean said.
“I feel like we can’t have a game against India at Lord’s without a bit of drama.
“It was good in terms of getting that sort of out of the way, but I’ve played with and against Deepti now for a couple of years, and it’s all water under the bridge, even though, you know, it was a bit of a spectacle at the time.”
Edwards’ consistency helping England stay on track
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India called for a controversial use of DRS in their second women’s ODI against England where Tammy Beaumont may have obstructed the field.
After the Ashes thrashing, England’s head coach Jon Lewis was replaced by Charlotte Edwards with Nat Sciver-Brunt taking over the captaincy from Heather Knight.
For Dean, the consistency that Edwards has brought to the team has helped the side learn from their mistakes.
“I think that’s what really good head coaches do, they stay consistent,” Dean added.
“That’s what I love about Lottie and I think that will hopefully allow us to really hone in on our learnings before the World Cup.
“I guess when you’ve got a World Cup coming up, it doesn’t matter too much about the results beforehand, as long as you take those learnings and you improve and do that quickly. That’s maybe where frustrations are, if we’re making the same mistakes.
“But hopefully that won’t continue to happen as much as we grow and get better. I love working with Lottie, and she’s got a brilliant tactical mind around the game. I can definitely see us going from strength to strength.”
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Highlights of the first ODI between England and India.
England vs India schedule
All times UK and Ireland; all live on Sky Sports
T20 international series
One-day international series
First ODI (Southampton): India won by four wicketsSecond ODI (Lord’s): England win by eight wickets (DLS method)Third ODI: Tuesday July 22 (1pm) – Chester-le-Street
Watch the third women’s one-day international between England and India, live on Sky Sports Cricket from 12.30pm on Tuesday from 12.30pm (first ball, 1pm) or stream without a contract.
