Kranti — living her dream at the iconic Lord’s

Kranti Gaud came wearing dark glasses. And she just couldn’t stop smiling.

It was obvious she was still living that dream. She had become the first woman to go on the Test honours board at Lord’s.

Her devastating spell of five for 37 had given India control of the Test match on the second day. England had no answer to pace and unwavering length.

Before the Test match, she had spoken of how excited she was at getting the opportunity to play at Lord’s and about making it to the honours board. She did even better. She became the first-ever woman to do it (no bowler took five wickets before her, no one scored a hundred).

“I am very proud to be the first woman to get my name on the Lord’s honours board,” Kranti said. “It is a proud moment for my family, too.”

Though all her five wickets were special, the one of the England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt was even more so. “The captain’s wicket after lunch was the most special; we were finding it difficult to make inroads,” she said.

Was she tense when she saw Sneh Rana drop the catch from Sophie Ecclestone before Shafali Verma completed it?

She laughed while talking about that unforgettable fifth wicket. “Sneh really put in a lot of effort to take the catch, but when she couldn’t hold on to it, Shafali gave it her 100 per cent,” Kranti said. “I lost sight of the ball, but then it looked like Shafali had taken the catch. I was about to celebrate my five-wicket haul, but my teammates told me to wait for the replay and the decision.”

England’s wicketkeeper Amy Jones, who top-scored for England with a counterattacking 52, praised Kranti’s spell. “She had nip and she was a handful,” she said. “Luckily, I didn’t have to face her much.”