Cricket: Rochdale-born Heather Knight captains England to Women's World Cup victory over India

It was a nail-biting final for the ICC Women's World cup on Sunday (23 July), but England, captained by Rochdale-born Heather Knight, cinched the title and triumphed over India by just nine runs.

Playing in front of a 24,000 strong crowd at Lord's, England won the toss and elected to bat, scoring 228/7 (50 overs) to India's 219 (48.4 overs). The bell to signal the start of play was run by Eileen Ash, the oldest surving international cricketer at 105 years of age.

The match, marking England's fourth World Cup win since 1973, was one of the closest finals in the tournament's history, with only the 2000 final between Australia and New Zealand decided by a narrower margin of four runs.

The victory is the first World Cup for Heather Knight as captain. Appointed in 2016, Knight replaced Charlotte Edwards after she stood down. Previously vice-captain for just under two years, Knight was called onto the England squad in 2010 as a replacement for injured Sarah Taylor and scored an impressive 49 in her international debut.

Speaking after the match, said: "What a day. I'm so proud."

26-year-old Knight began playing cricket in boys’ and men’s teams when she was just eight years old after moving to Plymouth as a young girl. A talented right-handed batswoman, she played for Plymstock Cricket Club and at county level for Devon. She was part of the England squad which reclaimed the Ashes against Australia in 2013 and helped retain them in 2014.

Knight was also voted player of the match during their quarter-final win against the West Indies, scoring 67 (88) and also scored her first maiden century alongside teammate Natalie Sciver during the Women’s One Day International (WODI) against Pakistan in the second round of the World Cup.