The upcoming tour of the Indian side is the Sri lanka tour where they will be playing 3 ODIs which are part of the ICC World Championship, followed by 5 T20s. The T20s will provide a good practice for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
The squad for the ODIs is as follows:
Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur (vc), Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma, Punam Raut, Jemimah Rodrigues, Veda Krishnamurthy, Taniya Bhatia, Dayalan Hemlata, Jhulan Goswami, Shikha Pandey, Mansi Joshi, Ekta Bisht, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav.
Let’s have a look at the players selected in the squad.
Mithali Raj: The most experienced batter in the side. She has a lot of responsibility both as a batter and as a captain.After having a good Challengers trophy with the bat as well as with the leadership duty, she will be confident before she hits the Lankan shores.
Harmanpreet Kaur: The vice-captain of the side will be eager to contribute in the batting department.Coming to bat in the lower middle order, the main task of her will be to stay till the end of the innings and use her long levers and power game to set big targets to the opposition.She had a good strike rate in KSL striking with 151.85. Her off-spin will come handy as well.
Smriti Mandhana: After successful KSL,she will be hoping to carry her form in Sri Lanka. She scored 421 runs at an average of 60.14 in KSL. The change in format won’t matter her as her fearless attitude has helped her reach greater heights.The dashing opener will be looking to stand up when the team needs the most.
Deepti Sharma: The left handed batter will be the key factor in the batting department.The ability to rotate strike against the spinners will help in building partnerships.The off spinning all rounder is very athletic and is a very good fielder.
Punam Raut: Making her comeback in the ODI side after a successful run in the Challengers trophy,she is the one to look after in the ODI series.She was the highest run scorer in the Challengers trophy with 135 runs from 5 innings.To cement her place in the side will be the biggest challenge in front of her.
Jemimah Rodrigues: The 19 year old has impressed everyone with her short stint with the national side.But her recent poor form will be a worry for the management.The fearless batter will be looking to convert starts into big scores.
Veda Krishnamurthy: The India Green captain had a decent run in the domestic competition but a considerable skin abrasion that she sustained during second match ruled her out of the last encounter.She will be fit to play in the first match and will look to score big as she hasn’t been able to impress with her willow.The athletic fielding provided by her will be a plus point in the future of the side.
Taniya Bhatia: A maiden ODI call up for her after her impressive run in the Challengers trophy.The run scoring opportunity that she creates against the spinners will come handy.She keeps the scoreboard ticking with odd boundary in between.She has bigger responsibility in her first ODI series.
Dayalan Hemlata: The 23 year old off spinning all rounder from Tamil Nadu had a good final which has resulted in her call up in both the formats.She scored a crucial 48 of 56 balls to take her team to a competitive total in the final which they eventually won. She will be eager to grab the opportunity whenever chance arises.
Jhulan Goswami: The most experienced bowler in the squad will be eager to take field after opting to retire from the shortest format.The experience under her belt will be useful in those spin friendly pitches.Her experience will be crucial in to win matches in Sri Lanka.
Shikha Pandey: The ability to bowl with new ball as well as with the old ball makes her different from other bowlers.The reverse swinging Yorker is the main weapon of her which might come effective.She can also contribute with the bat scoring handful of runs in the slog overs.She will lead the attack in T20s.
Mansi Joshi: The right arm seamer is making a comeback after 8 months.A good form has earned her a place in the side with Pooja Vastrakar been ruled out due to a knee injury.Whenever she gets an opportunity,she will be looking to hit the deck hard in those hot humid conditions.
Ekta Bisht: The left-arm spinner will be very effective in Sri Lanka.Her ability to bowl with the new ball is something to cherish.An excellent fielder provides much enthusiasm in the field.
Rajeshwari Gayakwad: The skill to deceive the batter in flight makes her a difficult bowler to score runs against.She has been among the wicket takers in domestic circuit and will be key element to clinch the series.
Poonam Yadav: The lone wrist spinner in the side has a unique skill of giving the ball a lot of air which provides her much success against most of the teams.She has been a difficult bowler to get away, which results in batters losing patience and throwing away their wickets.She has been very consistent with her line and length.
The additional players in the T20s are Anuja Patil, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav with Punam Raut, Rajeshwari Gayakwad missing out and Jhulan Goswami retiring from the shortest format.
The squad for the T20s is as follows:
Harmanpreet Kaur (c ) , Smriti Mandhana (vc), Mithali Raj, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Veda Krishnamurthy, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Dayalan Hemlata, Shikha Pandey, Mansi Joshi, Ekta Bisht, Poonam Yadav, Anuja Patil, Radha Yadav, Arundhati Reddy.
Let’s take a look at the players added in the T20 squad.
Anuja Patil: The dashing all rounder has shown great maturity and all round skills in the Challengers trophy.The innovative skills that she possesses helps her score quickly and freely.She has played 37 matches till date scoring 282 runs and picking 33 wickets at a good economy rate of 5.81. The off spinning all rounder is a good inclusion in the squad and will be a strong contender for the T20 World Cup.
Radha Yadav: A left-arm spinner has received a call up for the shortest format.The teenager from Baroda is regarded as the T20 specialist and been included in the squad after a good performance in the Challengers trophy.She has so far played 4 matches and taken 3 wickets with an economy of 7.00 with best figures of 2-16.
Arundhati Reddy: She is a right arm seamer. After the retirement of Jhulan Goswami, she has big boots to fill and expectations will be high from her.She is very excited upon the inclusion and is hoping to do well when she puts on the National colours.
The tour starts from 11th September and we wish both the teams best luck.We hope that the tour results in excellent matches and we get to see a good quality of cricket from everyone involved.