“This is our best team ever at a T20 World Cup,” declared Harmanpreet Kaur with unmistakable conviction as the Indian women’s cricket team prepared for their departure to Dubai. Kaur’s confidence in her squad is not without merit. The team is bringing unprecedented stability to this World Cup campaign—boasting an ensemble of players both seasoned and emerging from domestic leagues with impressive performances.
India has chosen to retain ten players from the 2023 World Cup squad. Among them are several top performers from the Women’s Premier League, whose successful spells have augmented India’s batting lineup and diversified their attacking options. Moreover, the team is welcoming back three players who have revived their international careers through stellar performances in domestic competitions.
Throughout this World Cup cycle, Australia and England continue to be the formidable giants to overcome. Yet, India’s recent comprehensive victories against both teams in separate matches highlight their competitive edge. However, not everything has been smooth sailing. A slip-up in chasing a target of 190 in a match against South Africa in Chennai, alongside a surprising defeat in the Asia Cup final at the hands of Chamari Athapaththu-driven Sri Lanka, sent ripples through the team. These setbacks occurred just before their World Cup journey, prompting India to intensify their preparations, including working with a professional sports psychologist to better handle high-pressure situations—a crucial focus area given their history of knockout defeats under coach Amol Muzumdar’s leadership.
The relocation of the World Cup from Bangladesh to the UAE hasn’t shifted India’s strategic focus. They continue to leverage their spin-heavy attack on foreign turf, backed by a commendable top batting lineup referred to as ‘top-of-the-class top-six’. Openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma have been showcasing good form, while Jemimah Rodrigues and captain Harmanpreet Kaur have each secured half-centuries in recent official warm-up matches and intra-squad games.
A significant change in strategy is the resolved batting order, specifically the number three position, which was under experimentation over the past six months. With a pool of talented all-rounders supporting finishers like Richa Ghosh and Pooja Vastrakar, India is strategically poised to chase the elusive T20 silverware.
Their current form guide, boasting victories in four of their last five T20 internationals (L W W W W), reflects their potential.
. The squad, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, includes notable players such as vice-captain Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa and Yastika Bhatia as wicketkeepers, and the power duo of Pooja Vastrakar and Renuka Singh Thakur among others. Key reserves have been listed, including Uma Chetry, Tanuja Kanwar, and Saima Thakor, forming a promising bench.
One standout player is Shreyanka Patil. What she lacks in experience, she makes up for with her speed, an asset among the Indian squad’s off-spinners. Overcoming a finger fracture sustained mid-season in the 2024 Women’s Premier League, she spun Royal Challengers Bangalore to victory with an impressive 4/12 in the final. Her overall performance earned her the Purple Cap for taking 13 wickets in eight outings and the Emerging Player of the Season award, accruing her a place in the national team. Previously, Patil had also left her mark in the Women’s CPL 2023, where she emerged as the leading wicket-taker. India’s management has high expectations, seeing potential in her ability to bowl through all phases of the game, her lower-order batting prowess, and her fielding agility—all making her a player to watch closely.
India enters this tournament viewed as a favoured contender for the title. Still, the recurring challenge is Australia, a psychological milestone yet to be crossed. Australia thwarted India’s T20 World Cup ambitions in the last two editions and defeated them during the inaugural Commonwealth Games. As part of the so-called ‘group of death,’ the teams have encountered each other only once outside this cycle, with Australia claiming two wins in the three-match T20I series.
Crucially, India will face Australia in their sole group stage match in Sharjah, a venue Australia will have already played at twice by that time, granting them the potential advantage of familiar conditions.
In past tournaments, India finished as losing semi-finalists in 2023. Their journey this year begins with a fully packed league stage roster: a face-off against New Zealand on October 4th in Dubai, followed by Pakistan on October 6th, Sri Lanka on October 11th, and the high-stakes game against Australia on October 13th in Sharjah. Optimism runs high within the Indian camp as they aim to leverage their settled squad and evolved strategies to finally clinch the coveted T20 World Cup trophy.