New Delhi: Indian cricket players Yastika Bhatia and Kranti Gaud have become the first women ever to feature on the iconic Lord’s honours board. This feat came after the one-off Test against England at the Lord’s Cricket Ground in London, England, universally recognised as the “Home of Cricket.”
As per the Lord’s official website, the match marked the ground’s first-ever women’s Test match exactly 50 years after England’s pioneering women’s international there. The Lord’s honours board situated in the Pavilion at ground commemorates cricket players who have scored a century, taken 5 wickets in a single innings, or taken 10 wickets in a match. Indian cricketers such as Ravi Shastri, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, KL Rahul, Kapil Dev, Irfan Pathan, Jasprit Bumrah are featured in the list.
England’s Sophie Ecclestone also made her way on the board with five wickets taken.
Gaud, the 22-year-old pacer from Madhya Pradesh, struck first with a 5/37 in England’s first innings, bowling them out for 170. Days later, wicketkeeper-batter 25-year-old Bhatia scored 113 runs from 158 balls in India’s second innings—scoring the first women’s Test century at the venue.
India declared their second innings at 341/7, setting a target of 457. By Day 3, England were at 130/6, looking at a massive defeat on their home ground.
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India’s trailblazers
Gaud hails from the village of Ghuwara in Bundelkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and is the youngest of six siblings. She grew up playing tennis-ball cricket with boys on uneven grounds. She represents Madhya Pradesh in domestic cricket and UP Warriorz in the Women’s Premier League. She was a part of the Indian team that won the 2025 Women’s Cricket World Cup.
At Lord’s, the 22-year-old right-arm fast-medium bowler delivered a 5/37, dismantling England’s batting. She is now the first woman to claim a Test five-wicket haul at the venue, earning a place on the board. She is the youngest Indian woman pacer to achieve the feat in a Test match.
Bhatia is a 25-year-old left-handed wicketkeeper-batter from Vadodara, Gujarat and was the batsperson on Day 3. Despite being in recovery from a knee injury, she delivered a phenomenal performance.
She scored 113 runs off 158 balls, hitting 14 boundaries. It was her maiden Test century. Bhatia’s international career began in 2021 with an Australia tour. She plays for the Mumbai Indians in the WPL.
“Six months ago, I was in a very different place. If you had told me then that I’d have my name on the Lord’s honours board, I wouldn’t have believed it,” she said in a BCCI video.
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The milestone
The Lord’s Ground has hosted legends since 1884. It is considered a great distinction to be named on either the batting or bowling honours boards. Until now, no women’s names appeared on the Test boards.
This one-off Test, marking 50 years since Rachael Heyhoe Flint’s England women first played at Lord’s changed that.
“Yastika, Kranti – you beauties. Welcome to the honours board at the Home of Cricket. This is something you will treasure all your life. And every Indian Woman cricketer aspiring,” wrote veteran Cricketer Ravi Shastri on X.