Early impressions: India's growing depth, Rana's third wind and the multi-faceted Deepti

India have just two series - six ODIs in total - to fine-tune combinations and iron out flaws before launching their home ODI World Cup campaign in under three months. Injury comebacks of key regulars could still sway selections closer to the tournament, but based on what they have in England right now, the win in the first ODI offered a promising glimpse into India's growing depth and reliable Plan Bs.

Kranti leaves her mark

With both Renuka Singh Thakur and Pooja Vastrakar out injured, India have carried a second-string - and a largely under-tested - pace attack to England. Of which, they preferred Kranti Goud, over a slightly more-experienced Arundhati Reddy, to share the new-ball duties with another rookie, Amanjot Kaur.

Goud made her debut in the tri-series final in Sri Lanka in May, and went wicketless in her five overs then. Her start in England was ominous too with three wides on the trot. But once she managed to fix her line, she produced an absolute jaffa to get rid of Amy Jones cheaply.

After that unintentional setup, the 21-year-old got one to nip back in just enough to beat the forward push from the English opener and hit the top of middle-stump. She followed it up with another inswinger to trap the in-form Tammy Beaumont plumb in front, and convinced her captain with absolute confidence to ultimately get the on-field not-out call overturned. England's ODI success against West Indies was largely down to the big-scoring ways of this opening pair, and Goud dismissed both for a combined tally of six runs to set India up well in the PowerPlay in just her second ODI.

Comeback queen for a reason

Make no mistake this is Sneh Rana's third wind as India cricketer. Labelled a red-ball specialist until a year ago, Rana earned this white-ball comeback via RCB in WPL 2025 where she was a late replacement for Shreyanka Patil. And on Wednesday at the Rose Bowl, she helped India come back into the game when the usually reliable Nat Sciver-Brunt and the in-form Emma Lamb were nearly shutting the doors on India after Goud's opening burst.

Rana came into the attack in the 17th over, after Shree Charani had sent down three quiet overs of left-arm spin alongside Deepti Sharma. The offie built more pressure with a tight first over and Lamb succumbed to that soon enough. The bait was set with a generously tossed up delivery outside off and Lamb couldn't resist the big shot, eventually chipping it straight down mid-off's throat.

And if breaking that threatening 71-run partnership wasn't enough, Rana went on to dismiss Sciver-Brunt too, courtesy a sharp stunner from Jemimah Rodrigues at short midwicket, at the start of her next over. With both set batters back in the hut in the space of 11 deliveries, England were forced into a slow rebuild and if India hadn't fluffed a couple of chances, the hosts could have been restricted well short of the eventual 258. Nonetheless, Rana's ability to work in partnerships and create chances stood out once again, making her a crucial cog of this spin attack.

.Deepti proves her worth

Exactly 7 years and 51 weeks ago, Deepti Sharma stood there in a packed Lord's, fending with the tail as India's last hope in a World Cup final. She failed to get India across then, but on every trip to England since Deepti has demonstrated her growth as an all-round asset.

The last-ball six to propel London Spirit to their maiden Hundred title last year helped dissolve the two-year animosity with Charlie Dean borne out of the infamous run-out while backing up - a saga that marred Jhulan Goswami's farewell ODI. Earlier in that game, her lesser-remembered but equally vital contribution was with the bat to bail India out from a precarious 29/4 with a top-scoring effort of 68* that gave the team a respectable 169 on the board.

While she continues to get frequently undermined as a premier allrounder, Deepti has often quietly saved the day with the bat if not the ball and vice-versa. On Wednesday, once again eyebrows were raised when she walked out at no. 6 ahead of more established finishers like Richa Ghosh and Amanjot Kaur.

However, after going wicketless, Deepti turned out to rescue India from a collapse when they still needed 135 at nearly run-a-ball. She forged a match-winning stand of 90 with Rodrigues enroute to an unbeaten 62, the highlight of which was a one-handed slog-sweep off pacer Lauren Bell into the deep midwicket stands. The duo kept noshing at the target with ones and twos when the boundaries dried up.

When Rodrigues and Ghosh fell in quick succession, another 30 were required off 32 deliveries - comfortable given their batting depth but also a banana peel India have slipped up on quite often. For Deepti, the situation was far too familiar and she kept her cool to see India through alongside Amanjot with 10 balls to spare, highlighting once again that her calmness and game-awareness under pressure is an underrated skill.

"I've faced this situation before and I knew that if I can be as calm as possible and composed [we can pull this off]," Deepti said. "That was a crucial point for us, and we focussed on building a partnership when I was batting with Jemi. The plan was clear - just take 5-6 runs an over, and we knew we can take this close. That's what we planned and that's what we executed... [Even after Jemi got out,] I was not nervous. I quite confident that if I stick there, I can finish the game for India. So, I was focusing more on that."