Indian women’s team failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the UAE. India finished third in Group A
Our Bureau
Mumbai
Star Indian batter Harmanpreet Kaur will remain captain following the team’s exit at the group stage of the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, as the squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series was announced on Thursday. The series will commence with the first ODI on October 24. All matches will be held at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium, according to the ICC.
In the squad named on Thursday, wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh was a notable absentee as she is set to sit her 12th standard board exams. Spinner Asha Sobhana also misses out due to an injury, making her unavailable for selection. Pooja Vastrakar, who sustained an injury during the tournament in the UAE, has been rested for this series.
There were maiden call-ups for Tejal Hasabnis, Saima Thakor, and Priya Mishra.
Meanwhile, the Indian women’s team failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the UAE. India finished third in Group A with two wins and two losses. A 58-run defeat to New Zealand in the opening match and a narrow loss to Australia on Sunday left them unable to progress to the knockouts, despite victories over Sri Lanka and arch-rivals Pakistan. From Group A, Australia (with four wins from four matches) and New Zealand (three wins and one loss) advanced to the semifinals. In Group B, the West Indies and South Africa secured their spots in the semifinals.
But India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur etched her name in the history book following her valiant effort to end Australia’s unbeaten streak in the Women’s T20 World Cup. In a gruelling 152-run chase, Harmanpreet strived hard to inspire India to victory in front of a sold-out crowd in Sharjah.
In a high-octane affair, the seasoned star slammed an unbeaten 54 off 47 deliveries, which eventually went in vain as India succumbed to a narrow defeat. Following her valiant effort, Harmanpreet became the joint-highest run-scorer for India in the Women’s T20 World Cup with a whopping tally of 726.
After riding high on her swaggering display, she stands level with the iconic Mithali Raj as the joint-leading run-getter in the marquee event for India. This wasn’t the only record that Harmanpreet went level with Mithali. The 35-year-old veteran tonked her fifth half-century in the Women’s T20 World Cup. She stands level with the former captain for scoring the most fifties in the competition for India.
Despite Harmanpreet’s efforts, it was Australia that kept its win streak intact by putting India’s chances of featuring in the semi-finals in jeopardy. In an enticing affair, a brilliant final over by Annabel Sutherland sealed the deal for Australia as India fell just nine runs short of taking a step closer to the final four stage of the competition.
Earlier, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced the schedule of Indian women’s team’s home series of three-match ODI series against New Zealand, starting from October 24 onwards. BCCI’s issued statement on Monday said, “The Board of Control for Cricket in India on Monday announced the fixtures for Team India’s (Senior Women) upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand. The series to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad is a part of the ICC Women’s Championship.”
All the matches will be played at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium, with first match taking place on October 24. It will be followed by two fixtures on October 27 and October 29. All the matches will take place on 1:30 PM IST.
Boxes
Fixtures
24th Oct ’24 – Thursday – 1.30 PM IST – ODI – Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
27th Oct ’24 – Sunday – 1.30 PM IST – ODI – Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
29th Oct ’24 – Tuesday – 1.30 PM IST – ODI – Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
India ODI squad
Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, D Hemalatha, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Uma Chetry (wk), Sayali Satgare, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Tejal Hasabnis, Saima Thakor, Priya Mishra, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil.
