1st WODI: Elegant Smriti wins it for India as Jhulan rolls back time

Hove: The graceful Smriti Mandhana once again enhanced her reputation as one of India's biggest match winners with an attractive 91 that literally decimated England by seven wickets in the opening WODI, here on Sunday.

Harmanpreet Kaur won a good toss and veteran India pacer Jhulan Goswami was accuracy personified with 42 dot balls in one of of her last international games as England managed a sub-par 227 for seven, largely due to efforts from the lower middle-order.

India were never in trouble during the chase as Mandhana (91 off 99 balls) literally drove and pulled her way before missing out on a deserving sixth WODI hundred by nine runs.

But by the time she was dismissed, Mandhana ensured a 45th over finish for the Women In Blue, who now go 1-0 up in three-match series.

Yastika Bhatia (50 off 47 balls), who hasn't done justice to her enormous talent, also notched up her third half-century and scored at more than run-a-ball strike-rate.

Yastika-Mandhana second wicket stand of 96 in just 16.1 overs set the foundation and then Harmanpreet (74 not out in 94 balls) eased her way to a another fifty as she added 99 runs with her deputy and then finished it off in style with a slog sweep six.

Mandhana's innings had 10 fours and a lovely six over long-on off seamer Issy-Wong.

While both Yastika and Mandhana drove majestically through the covers during the Powerplay, the Indian vice-captain also played a lot of pull-shots with English bowlers drifting down the leg-side.

It must be said that Harmanpreet read the conditions at the County Ground in Hove way better than her England counterpart Amy Jones.