They had just lost opening batsman Jaya Sharma to a catch at mid-wicket by Arran Thompson from Clare Connor's first over of left-arm slow bowling.

India were 39 for two with their two best batsmen, Mithali Raj (19) and Anjum Chopra (still to score) at the wicket. They had to remain together for as long as possible to make the win achievable for India. The target for them was 192 runs.

India lost Sunetra Paranjpe off the third ball of the innings when she was trapped leg before wicket by Lucy Pearson.

But all that did was bring in ace batsman Mithali Raj all the earlier. She has been one of the top batsmen at the tournament with a wide array of strokes and she always scores at a good clip.

She found a suitable ally in Jaya Sharma, who hasn't always been the preferred option by India during the tournament. Sharma played two superbly-timed drives just to the off-side of the pitch for boundaries in successive overs from Claire Taylor.

Raj had the benefit of being dropped on two by wicket-keeper Clare Taylor standing up to the bowling of Claire Taylor. But undeterred she played a defensive cut shot with ease which went straight to ground and then raced away to the boundary for four runs off Lucy Pearson.

Sharma was also dropped, when on 14, by Kathryn Leng at first slip, also from Pearson's bowling. When she was dismissed she had scored 16 from 51 balls.

Pearson ended her spell having bowled seven overs for 18 runs and the one wicket.

England should have made much greater capital from opener Kathryn Leng's innings of 80, scored from 109 balls than proved the case. She gave the side every chance of a score well in excess of 200. Instead, India, again through the slow left-arm spin of Neetu David pulled England back with relative ease. David took three for 42 from her 10 overs.

David it was who stopped Leng's innings just when it seemed she would take complete control. Leng had been attacking by using her feet to get down the pitch to the slower bowlers but on the ball from which she was dismissed she caught a bottom edge which rebounded onto her wickets.

Her 80 was her highest score in 56 One-Day Internationals, beating the 46 she had scored against South Africa in the 2000 World Cup and against India at home last year.

As an indication of the shape of her innings, her first 33 runs came off 66 balls, then the next47 runs took only 43 balls.

She was highly effective hitting back down the ground and also through the cover region.

But once she was dismissed England struggled to make any headway again. Aaran Thompson was run out for nine, Clare Connor was bowled by David and Laura Newton was stumped from Nooshin-Al-Khadir's bowling for four. England had slumped from 152 for three wickets to be 163 for seven. Then three runs later Dawn Holden was bowled for six.

Total embarrassment was saved the siide when Clare Taylor and Laura Harper showed the benefits to be had from sensibly dabbing the ball wide of the wicket-keeper and running hard. They took nine and 11 runs off successive overs to add 21 runs in quick time before Taylor was run out for 14.

Lucy Pearson had time to walk in and be given out leg before wicket for a duck.

England had good cause to be disappointed with the outcome of their innings. They lost seven wickets for 39 runs off 66 balls.

Nooshin-Al-Khadir, who suffered in her first three overs when hit for 17 runs, but she came back and bowled her last seven for 15 overs and two wickets while Jhulan Goswami ended the innings with two for 24.

England were 113 for two wickets after 30 overs.

Leng led the England assault with some convincing and powerful stroke play as they build a solid foundations for a last 20-overs assault on the scoreboard.

Leng, whose previous highest score in 56 One-Day Internationals was 46, scored twice before, against South Africa at the 2000 World Cup and last year against India at home, was on 55. It was her 50th ODI innings. She played some powerful shots straight back down the wicket and through covers area.

After her opening stand of 35 with Sarah Collyer she then shared a 64-run stand for the second wicket with Charlotte Edwards, off 97 balls. Edwards, who was out leg before wicket for 21 off 45 balls, seemed to suffer a knee injury while running between the wickets in what became the last stages of her innings.

She had just helped Leng post the England 100 in the 27th over off 159 balls.

The tournament's top wicket-taker Nooshin-Al-Khadir came in for some heavy treatment with 17 runs coming off the three overs she bowled before being replaced.

Of the Indians, it was medium-fast bowler Jhulan Goswami who was the most effective with one wicket for 13 runs from her eight overs.

Having chosen to bat first they were 51 for one wicket at the end of 15 overs.

England opened with Kathryn Leng and Sarah Collyer, with Charlotte Edwards coming in at No 3. Leng and Collyer did put on 35 before Collyer edged the impressive Indian fast-medium bowler Jhulan Goswami to Sulakshna Kaik, the Indian wicket-keeper when she had scored 13 runs.

It had taken some hard graft for the pair as they played out three maidens in the first 10 overs.

However, they were able to take some useful runs off Amita Sharma when she conceded seven runs in her third over and 10 in her fifth.

But in freeing up the scoring, Collyer also opened herself up to the sort of mistake that contributed to her dismissal in the 11th over when her 36-ball innings was undone.

Leng looked much more compact and assured and her straight drive for three off Sharma was a sign of her developing confidence on what is a pitch that has plenty of runs available for batsmen prepared to put in the effort.

The biggest hindrance to that operation was Goswami whose first eight overs conceded only 13 runs, four of them from wides.

Leng was 22 not out off 40 balls and Edwards one not out off 14.

The game was a one-run win to England off the last ball of the game when India blew their potential match-winning situation.

It was England's only win of the tournament to date.

England chose to bat first today on what should be an outstanding pitch for the match.

Conditions are fine but with a blustery north-east wind blowing across the ground.

India have not named Rumeli Dhar for the game and he place is taken by Jaya Sharma while England had retained the same side from yesterday's game.

The teams are:

England: Clare Connor (captain), Kathryn Leng, Sarah Collyer, Charlotte Edwards, Claire Taylor, Arran Thompson, Dawn Holden, Laura Newton, Laura Harper, Clare Taylor, Lucy Pearson. (12th man - Nicky Shaw).

India: Anjum Chopra (captain), Sunetra Paranjpe, Jaya Sharma, Mithali Raj, Hemlata Kala, Nooshin-Al-Khadir, Sulakshna Naik, Neetu David, Amita Sharma, Jhulan Goswami, Babita Mandilka. (12th man - Reema Malhotra).

The umpires are: Tony Hill and Gary Baxter.