With the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 just months away, the Indian women’s cricket team finds itself at the cusp of a pivotal journey—one defined by fierce preparation, returning stars, and glaring administrative silences. The tour of England and a home series against Australia form the only confirmed steppingstones in what is otherwise an oddly narrow path to cricket’s grandest stage.
Just six ODIs are scheduled before the tournament kicks off, but they come against two of the most formidable forces in women’s cricket—England and Australia.
India’s white-ball tour of England, set to begin on June 28, will see five T20Is and three ODIs, with a full-strength squad led by Harmanpreet Kaur and her trusted deputy, Smriti Mandhana. The squad announcement marks the return of key performers like Shafali Verma and Sneh Rana in the T20I format, both bringing experience and recent domestic success.
Rana continues to hold her place in the ODI fold after a standout Tri-Nation Series, where she grabbed 15 wickets and was named Player of the Series. Yet, despite smashing 527 runs in the domestic one-day circuit at an average of 75.29, Shafali remains sidelined from the ODI squad. The reason? Likely the rise of Pratika Rawal, who has stormed into the ODI scene with 638 runs in 11 matches, including a stunning 154.
While the England series concludes on July 22, the final stretch of preparation will unfold in September, as Australia tours India for a three-match ODI series at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium under lights on September 14, 17, and 20. This high-voltage bilateral will be India’s final opportunity to test combinations before the World Cup, which begins on September 29 and runs till October 26. Despite the stature of the rivalry, the numbers offer a sobering reality: out of 56 ODIs against Australia, India has managed just 10 wins, losing 46.
The last taste of victory for India over Australia came on September 21, 2021, when they halted Australia’s record 26-match winning streak. Since then, the tide has been unforgiving. Australia has claimed seven consecutive ODI wins, including clean sweeps in December 2023 (Mumbai) and December 2024 (Australia).
The December 2024 series, in particular, laid bare the gap—India bowled out for 100 in the opener, followed by defeats of 122 runs and 83 runs. Australia’s domination featured debutant Georgia Voll’s stunning 173 runs in 3 matches, including a 101, while India’s only standout was Smriti Mandhana with 122 runs, highlighted by a century. Bowling-wise, India found little success, save for Arundhati Reddy, who took 4 wickets in one match.
What makes this buildup all the more critical is the sheer lack of matches. Just six ODIs—and that too against the two most intimidating sides in world cricket. It’s a quality test, no doubt, but dangerously short on quantity.
Yet the gravest concern lies not on the field but in the shadows surrounding it. There is a deafening silence ahead of what should be a landmark moment in Indian cricket—the country is hosting its first Women’s ODI World Cup without Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami, symbolic of a new era. And yet, the anticipation is eerily absent.
The BCCI’s approach has been more bureaucratic than celebratory. Venue choices for the World Cup have raised eyebrows. Powerhouse cities—Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata—have been ignored in favor of Raipur, Guwahati, Indore, Thiruvananthapuram, and Mullanpur. While expanding the game to newer territories is commendable in theory, sidelining traditional hubs—many of which successfully hosted WPL matches with strong turnouts—suggests poor strategic planning.
The Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium in Mullanpur will probably host the final, despite never having held a women’s international. Visakhapatnam, the only city among the chosen venues with any women’s cricket history, will host the tournament opener and the inaugural ceremony. Yet, it last hosted women’s matches over a decade ago.
Even Pakistan, often lagging in infrastructure and promotional scale, has recently hosted the Women’s World Cup Qualifiers at premier venues in Lahore, showcasing more coherent planning. Meanwhile, India’s rollout is riddled with missed opportunities—from promotional voids to venue missteps. This was a golden moment to introduce new stars and reignite public emotion post the Raj-Goswami era. Instead, what should be a crescendo is, for now, a whisper.
The countdown has begun. The players are ready. The squads are stacked. But unless the noise grows louder and the stage grander, India’s World Cup dream risks being fought not just against world champions, but against indifference at home.
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