India’s team for the T20 World Cup, which starts on October 3, has been revealed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The captain will be Harmanpreet Kaur, with Smriti Mandhana serving as her deputy. Although they have been added to the squad, Yashtika Bhatia and Shreyanka Patil’s selection is contingent on their level of fitness.
This year’s event did not include a number of well-known celebrities from last year, such as Rajeshwari Gaekwad, Harleen Deol, and Shikha Pandey. Pandey played for the Trinbago Knight Riders in the Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) to support her claims, but the team management thought having an additional spinner would be beneficial given the favourable conditions in the United Arab Emirates.
Asha Sobhana’s outstanding performance with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Women’s Premier League 2024 helped her gain a spot on the national team. In the two games she participated in during the five-match series at home, she claimed four wickets on her T20I debut against Bangladesh. on the home series against South Africa, Sobhana also claimed a match-winning four-for on her ODI debut.
On the opposite side, Deepti Sharma is playing excellently. In eight games, she took eight wickets and amassed 212 runs with a strike rate of 132.50. Her presence in the middle order is crucial for the team because India has had difficulty in that area over the years. Richa Ghosh is anticipated to be a major player in the competition as well. With a strike rate of 140.52, the 21-year-old has amassed 860 runs at a T20I scoring average of 55 matches for India thus far.
Also Read: Bangladesh will host Scotland in the opening match of the women’s T20 World Cup, which will see India play Pakistan on October 6
In the interim, Harmanpreet and Smriti Mandhana will continue to be the centre of attention. India was subjected to criticism following their Asia Cup loss to Sri Lanka, especially from Harmanpreet, who pointed out that India had been left out of several ICC events under her rule.
India’s squad for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024
Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Yastika Bhatia (wk)*, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Dayalan Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil*, Sajana Sajeevan.
Travelling Reserves: Uma Chetry (wk), Tanuja Kanwer, Saima Thakor
Non-Travelling Reserves: Raghvi Bist, Priya Mishra