At least one top country will be eliminated early from what seems to be an exceptionally open Women’s T20 World Cup, which begins on Friday when hosts England take on Sri Lanka in Birmingham.
There would be no “group of death” in a 12-team competition where the teams are divided into two pools of six.
Heavyweights in women’s cricket, Australia, India, and South Africa, are all in Group One. Only the top two will advance to the semi-finals, thus one of the three will be leaving before a knockout stage that ends on July 5 with a Lord’s final.
Although both countries will be cautious of the West Indies, who won the tournament in 2016 but haven’t performed as well lately, a Group Two with the reigning champions New Zealand and England appears more straightforward. Alongside established Asian countries like Pakistan and Sri Lanka, Ireland, Scotland, and the Netherlands will represent Europe in cricket.
Top female cricket players are now more exposed to elite competition outside of big international tournaments than ever thanks to the rise of white-ball contests like Australia’s Big Bash, England’s Hundred, and India’s Women’s Premier League.
For the first time since 2018, Australia, the six-time T20 winners, do not have any international trophies to defend after dominating the women’s game for decades.
However, Australia may have created a dilemma for themselves by selecting left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux, who suffers from back issues, as captain in place of retiring all-time great Alyssa Healy. As a result, gifted leg-spinner Alana King is expected to be left off the team.
Smriti Mandhana, Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues, and big-hitting Harmanpreet Kaur are among the top batters in women’s cricket, and India is the 50-over world champion.
When a reporter questioned feisty captain Kaur on Sunday whether this might be her final international event at the age of 37, she responded, “You think I should stop?” Despite their erratic performance since arriving for a bilateral series against tournament hosts England, they are still capable of defeating any team on their day.
Even though South Africa has advanced to the last three major women’s finals, two veterans—fast bowler Shabnim Ismail and batsman Dane van Niekerk—have been summoned back from retirement.
At 128 km/h (80 mph) against the West Indies in 2016, Ismail set the record for the fastest ball ever bowled in women’s international cricket.
At this tournament, New Zealand will bid farewell to two all-time greats: Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates. Lea Tahuhu is also expected to retire. New Zealand, the unexpected winners of 2024, seem to be under less pressure this time.
Since their 2017 50-over victory at Lord’s, England Women have not won any form of world title, despite winning every World Cup at home.
After the team’s crushing 0-16 defeat in the 2024–25 multi-format Ashes, Charlotte Edwards, a multiple winner as England captain, was named coach. She has, however, continued to have faith in many of the same players who were severely exposed in Australia and whose composure has consistently failed them in elimination matches.
