Strongest India Playing 11 for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024

India Women will play their first game in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup against New Zealand women on Friday. The team enters the tournament as one of the favourites to clinch the title victory. However, placed in Group A, arguably the group of death with the likes of Australia, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka, the Women in Blue will need to play to all their strengths to turn the tournament in their favour. Luckily for India, the squad selected for the marquee event has no injury concerns. The inclusion of young spinner Shreyanka Patil and wicketkeeper-batter Yastika Bhatia was subject to fitness. However, both players took the field in India’s warm-up games, indicating their fitness to play in the main event.

India women squad for the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024

The Indian women's team last played a T20I contest almost three months back when they lost the Asia Cup final to Sri Lanka Women in July. However, some players from the squad have since featured in The Hundred Women’s tournament and the Caribbean Premier League. Moreover, the board also held a training camp for the India women's squad in Bengaluru ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Finally, the group played two warm-up matches against West Indies Women and South Africa Women, winning both of them comfortably.

Going into the tournament, one of the biggest challenges for the team to solve was finding the perfect fit for the No. 3 position. Over the recent past, India women team has tried the likes of Yastika Bhatia and Jemimah Rodrigues in the position. However, on the eve of India’s tournament opener, coach Amol Mazumdar confirmed that skipper Harmanpreet Kaur has been locked in to bat in the position for the team. The skipper played at No. 3 in both the warm-up matches. However, the seasoned all-rounder failed to register an impactful knock. Now, it remains to be seen if Harmanpreet is the answer to India’s No. 3 puzzle or if the team will need to reshuffle the batting order midway through the tournament.

Predicting the strongest India Playing 11 for T20 World Cup

Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma will play the most crucial roles in India’s campaign at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. The experienced opener is the highest run-getter for India in the shortest format. Moreover, Shafali Verma brings the aggressive intent needed to fire up the order in the powerplay. The U-19 World Cup-winning skipper concluded the Asia Cup as the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament, with 200 runs across five innings.

Next up, eyes will be on Jemimah Rodrigues in the middle order, who came through with the sole half-century scored by the team in the warm-up matches. As for the bowling order, India has a formidable spin attack lined up, led by the seasoned Deepti Sharma. Moreover, young RCB star Shreyanka Patil, who has swiftly risen through the ranks to find a place in the India women's squad, is fit to feature in the tournament. Alongside, all-rounder Pooja Vastrakar will be the key pick in the pace lineup with Renuka Singh Yadav.

India Women squad for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup

Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Yastika Bhatia, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Dayalan Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Sajana Sajeevan.

Probable India Playing XI for ICC Women’s T20 World Cup

Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, Pooja Vastrakar, Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Renuka Singh.

India Women will start the campaign with the clash against New Zealand Women on October 4, Friday. Next up, the team will meet their arch-rivals Pakistan in an anticipated heated match on Sunday, October 6. The draw will then grow tougher for the team as they face the ghost of their Asia Cup final defeat on October 9, when they take on Sri Lanka Women in Dubai. Finally, India will meet the defending champions Australia Women in their final league stage fixture on October 13.