IND-W vs AUS-W: India's probable 11 ahead of Commonwealth Games 2022 Match 1
India Women will take on Australia Women (IND-W vs AUS-W) in the opening match of the Women’s T20 Commonwealth Games 2022 on Friday (July 29) at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
India Women have done well in their recent T20I series against Sri Lanka Women, coming into the Commonwealth Games 2022. They won the three-match series 2-1.
Harmanpreet Kaur will lead the side as the Women in Blue will play their first major tournament in a long time without Mithali Raj, who recently announced her retirement. Smriti Mandhana has been appointed as Harmanpreet's deputy.
Regulars such as Shafali Verma, Sneh Rana, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Pooja Vastrakar have been included in the squad.
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It will also be an opportunity for players such as Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh and Harleen Deol who have been included in the squad. Simran Bahadur, Richa Ghosh and Poonam Yadav are the reserve players.
IND-W vs AUS-W Commonwealth Games 2022: Team India's likely 11 for 1st Match
India Women have announced a strong squad for the historic women’s event in the Commonwealth Games 2022. There is a good balance between experienced players and youth in the side. Here is a look at India Women’s predicted XI for the first match against Australia Women.
Openers: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma
Vice-captain Smriti Mandhana is among the most experienced batters in the line-up. She has been a consistent performer for India Women throughout the years and has also played in the Big Bash League (BBL) and The Hundred, performing well overseas. Mandhana has scored 2033 runs from 87 T20Is.
Shafali Verma is also an explosive opener and likes to take on the bowlers. Although relatively young, she has taken massive strides in her career already. The right-hander has scored 753 runs from 32 T20Is at a strike-rate of 139.18.
Middle Order: Yastika Bhatia (wk), Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Deepti Sharma
Yastika Bhatia is likely to be the first-choice wicket-keeper for India Women. Yastika can provide stability and hold one end in the middle order. She has performed well in the ODI format but is yet to make impactful performances in the T20 format with the bat.
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Jemimah Rodrigues was the second highest run-getter for India Women in the T20Is against Sri Lanka Women. She is another exciting batter who has played in the BBL and The Hundred as well. Jemimah has impressive numbers, scoring 1127 runs from 53 T20Is and is someone who can take the game away on her own.
Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur has been an ardent servant of the side for a long time now. She brings immense experience to the table and is not only a powerful leader but also a utility cricketer. She led the side well against Sri Lanka Women and will look to do the same here. Kaur has scored 2411 runs and picked up 31 wickets in T20Is for India Women. She is a vital cog for the Women in Blue.
Deepti Sharma is another fine all-rounder who has made impactful contributions time and again with both the bat and the ball. Deepti also brings the experience of having played in overseas T20 leagues. She has scored 520 runs and grabbed 63 wickets from 61 T20Is.
Bowlers: Pooja Vastrakar, Radha Yadav, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh, Rajeshwari Gayakwad
Pooja Vastrakar will lead the fast-bowling attack for India Women in the absence of Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey. The right-arm pacer has shown her worth with the ball. Pooja has also developed herself as a reliable batter and can make important contributions. She has scored 184 runs from 27 T20Is at a strike-rate of 131.42 and has also picked up 21 wickets.
Radha Yadav had a good outing against Sri Lanka Women. The left-arm spinner picked up four wickets in the T20I series. She has 56 wickets to her name and also bowls with good control. Additionally, Radha is a gun fielder as well.
Meghna Singh impressed in the ODI series against Sri Lanka Women, where she picked up four wickets. She has 14 wickets from as many ODIs and has bowled at a good economy-rate as well. It will be interesting to see how she performs in the T20 format as she is yet to play a T20I for India Women.
Right-arm pacer Renuka Singh will be the key for the Women in Blue with the new ball. She was effective against Sri Lanka Women, picking up seven wickets in the ODI series with most of her scalps coming in the powerplay. Renuka will have to make the most of the conditions on offer in English conditions for pacers.
Left-arm spinner Rajeshwari Gayakwad will be India’s leading spinner in this competition. She has picked up 45 wickets from 36 T20Is in her career so far. Her average of 18.00, strike-rate of 16.9 and economy-rate of 6.38 indicates that she is an effective bowler as well apart from being a wicket-taker.