Freya Kemp produced one of the most complete all-round performances of her young international career as England beat India by 26 runs at Bristol’s County Ground on Saturday, levelling the five-match T20 international series 1-1 with one game remaining.
The 21-year-old left-armer smashed 39 from just 13 balls — a strike rate of exactly 300 — to drag England from 112-5 to a defendable 167-7, before returning with the ball to remove India captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues for combined figures of 2-15 from her four overs. India were dismissed for 141 with two balls to spare, with Sophie Ecclestone taking 3-22 to seal a result that keeps Charlotte Edwards’ side alive in a series that had threatened to slip away after the four-wicket defeat in Chelmsford on Wednesday.
Kemp’s cameo flips the contest
England’s innings was meandering when Kemp walked to the crease in the 16th over. Nat Sciver-Brunt had anchored sensibly for 41 from 38, Heather Knight had chipped in with 28, but the required tempo was missing against a disciplined Indian attack led by Deepti Sharma, who finished with 2-24.
Kemp changed the equation in the space of three overs. She launched Shreyanka Patil for consecutive sixes over long-on and deep midwicket, reverse-swept Radha Yadav for four, and finished the innings with a flat-batted six off Renuka Singh that cleared the sightscreen. Her 39 contained five fours and three sixes, and England plundered 55 from the final four overs — a swing of roughly 30 runs above the par projection at the 16-over mark.
“I just backed myself to clear the ropes,” Kemp said afterwards. “We knew 160 was about par on that surface and we were probably 20 short with four overs to go. Anything in the slot, I was going.”
Edwards, in her second series in charge after replacing Jon Lewis in March, called the innings “the difference between the two sides on the day”. The England head coach has spoken repeatedly this summer about wanting greater intent through the middle phase, and Kemp’s performance was the clearest evidence yet that the message is being absorbed.
India undone by middle-order squeeze
India’s chase began promisingly. Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma added 48 inside the powerplay, with Mandhana striking three crisp boundaries through the covers off Lauren Bell. But Kemp’s introduction in the seventh over transformed the contest.
Her first delivery to Rodrigues was angled across the right-hander, who edged behind to Amy Jones. Three overs later she had Kaur caught at long-on attempting to clear the rope, and India had slipped from 62-1 to 78-3. Ecclestone, the world’s top-ranked T20 bowler, then squeezed the run rate, removing Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh and Sneh Rana in a spell that conceded just 22 from her four overs.
Mandhana’s 58 from 44 balls was the innings of the day from an Indian perspective, but she ran out of partners. When she was bowled by Sarah Glenn attempting a reverse sweep in the 17th over, the chase was effectively over. India’s lower order managed only 11 from the final three overs.
It was England’s third consecutive home T20 win over India and their first by a margin of more than 20 runs since the 2022 Commonwealth Games semi-final at Edgbaston.
What it means for the World Cup build-up
The result restores parity in a series that doubles as a key marker on the road to next year’s T20 World Cup in England. Edwards has named Kemp as a player she expects to “be central” to that campaign, and Saturday’s performance pushes the all-rounder firmly into the starting XI conversation alongside Sciver-Brunt and Alice Capsey.
- Kemp’s 39 was the highest score by an England number seven in T20Is since Capsey’s 46 against Sri Lanka in 2023
- Ecclestone has now taken 142 T20I wickets — second only to India’s Deepti Sharma (149) among active players
- England have won 11 of their last 14 T20Is at home, with the only defeats coming against Australia
The decider takes place at The Oval on Tuesday evening. India will likely recall left-arm seamer Arundhati Reddy, who missed Bristol with a side strain, while England face a selection call over the fitness of Danni Wyatt-Hodge, who left the field with a hamstring tightness in the 14th over of her side’s innings.
For Kemp, the immediate target is a maiden international half-century. On Saturday’s evidence, the harder challenge will be giving bowlers anywhere in the world a reliable plan to stop her getting there.
Sports journalist and editor at SportsPortal.net. Covers cricket, football, Formula 1, tennis, and basketball with a focus on how global sports connect with Pakistani audiences. Follows the PSL, Pakistan national cricket team, Premier League, and major international tournaments. Has reported on sports for digital audiences since 2021.
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