As they start their campaign in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in Birmingham on Sunday, a well-balanced India will require openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma to go all out against a challenging Pakistan.
After winning the 50 overs edition last year, India, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, are hoping to add a second worldwide title to their repertoire.
India have a significant advantage over the cross-border opponents based on head-to-head statistics. In the shortest format, India has a commanding 13-3 advantage. India defeated Pakistan by six wickets in their last encounter, which took place in Dubai during the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Since then, India has become into a more reliable and strong white ball team, as seen by their victory in the ODI World Cup. India’s pursuit of a T20 title will be led by nearly the same team.
In the lead-up to the event, India has also been in respectable form. They demonstrated their all-weather skills by defeating Sri Lanka (5-0) at home and defeating Australia (2-1) and England (3-2) away from home. They did, however, also receive opportune wake-up calls during away series losses to England (1-2) and South Africa (1-4).
It became clear that vice-captain Mandhana and her partner Shafali needed to form a stronger opening partnership for India.
Mandhana scored 13, 12, 37, 0, 32, and 8 in her next six games following an 82 against the Australians in Adelaide in February. Shafali tells a similar tale. The right-hander could only score 9, 4, 2, 22, and 11 in the following five innings following her 64 against South Africa in Johannesburg.
In order to fend off an attack by Pakistan, which will be spearheaded by their enthusiastic captain Fatima Sana, India would need them operating at maximum capacity. With an average of more than 50 with the bat and less than 25 with the ball over the past year or so, Sana is in excellent form right now.
The 24-year-old recently scored the fastest fifty in women’s Twenty20 Internationals against Zimbabwe in Karachi off just 15 balls, and she will undoubtedly cause concern for the Indian bowling unit, which has not yet hurt Amanjot Kaur and Kashvee Gautam.
However, Harmanpreet has found her form again, scoring two fifties against England and South Africa, which should significantly improve the middle order.
In addition to the skipper, India will rely on Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, and Bharti Fulmali to maintain the flow of runs against a competent Pakistani bowling lineup that also includes economical left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu.
In the last three-match series against England, wicketkeeper batter Yastika Bhatia was India’s top scorer. However, the 25-year-old would seek to raise her strike rate from the current 99.
Even if the circumstances aren’t quite ideal for her off-spin, seasoned all-rounder Deepti Sharma will also need to contribute significantly with both bat and ball during the event.
Teams (from):
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Bharti Fulmali, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, Shree Charani, Yastika Bhatia, Nandani Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh, Kranti Gaud, Shreyanka Patil, Radha Yadav
Pakistan: Fatima Sana (captain), Gull Feroza, Ayesha Zafar, Iram Javed, Eyman Fatima, Aliya Riaz, Natalia Parvaiz, Saira Jabeen, Muneeba Ali, Tuba Hassan, Rameen Shamim, Sadia Iqbal, Nashra Sandhu, Diana Baig, Tasmia Rubab
Match starts: 1900 IST
