Yastika Bhatia creates history, becomes second Indian left-hander after Sourav Ganguly to…

Yastika Bhatia, the Indian wicketkeeper-batter, etched her name permanently into the cricket history books on Sunday, July 12, 2026, becoming the first-ever woman to score a Test century at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground.  

With her impressive hundred during the historic one-off Test against England, the 25-year-old Yastika also joined a legendary lineage of Indian cricket, becoming only the second Indian left-handed batter after the great Sourav Ganguly to score a Test century at the iconic ‘Home of Cricket.’  

Yastika’s feat draws a direct parallel to Ganguly, the ‘Prince of Kolkata’, who announced himself on the global stage with a stunning 131 on Test debut at Lord’s in 1996. Like Bhatia, Ganguly was a left-hander who combined elegance with grit.  

Entering Day 3 on an overnight score of 39, Yastika Bhatia’s morning could have ended before it even began. The very first delivery of the day from England pacer Lauren Bell completely beat her inside edge and clipped the off-stump – but in a miraculous stroke of fortune, the bails refused to fall.

Capitalising on the massive reprieve, Yastika grew in confidence. She batted with immense grit, elegant strokeplay, and absolute authority, heavily targeting the straight boundaries and the cover region. She reached her half-century off 86 balls and marched confidently into the lunch break at 91 not out.

There were no signs of nervous nineties for Bhatia after the lunch break. Facing England fast bowler Issy Wong, she aggressively slashed consecutive boundaries through the backward point region to reach 99 before running a sharp single to cover to seal her milestone.  

Upon completing the historic single, an emotional Bhatia dropped to her knees and kissed the hallowed Lord’s turf as the entire crowd and her teammates on the dressing room balcony rose for a lengthy standing ovation.  

Her masterful knock finally came to an end at 113 runs off 158 balls (including 14 boundaries), caught at point off Sophie Ecclestone.

• Yastika Bhatia is the first woman in the 142-year history of Lord’s to score a Test century.
• Indian left-hander to score a Lord’s Test century, mirroring Sourav Ganguly’s iconic 1996 debut hundred. 
• Her final score is now the highest individual score by an Indian woman in the third or fourth innings of a Test match, surpassing Sandhya Agarwal’s 98 against New Zealand in 1985.

Highest scores in 3rd/4th inns of a Women’s Test for India

104* – Yastika Bhatia vs ENG-W, Lord’s, 2026

98 – Sandhya Agarwal vs NZ-W, Lucknow, 1985

83 – Sandhya Agarwal vs AUS-W, Wankhede, 1984

80* – Sneh Rana vs ENG-W, Bristol, 2021

75 – Gargi Banerjee vs ENG-W, Blackpool, 1986

72 – Gargi Banerjee vs AUS-W, Wankhede, 1984

Notably, Yastika Bhatia wasn’t the only Indian making history on the Lord’s Honours Board during this match. She joined young Indian bowler Kranti Gaud, who earned her spot on the legendary board just a day prior by taking a spectacular five-wicket haul during England’s first innings.  

Riding on Yastika’s impressive century and fine fifties from Smriti Mandhana and Richa Ghosh, India declared their second innings at 341/7, setting England a daunting target of 457 in the historic Women’s Test at Lord’s.