Bangladesh’s 24-year-old top-order batter Sobhana Mostary is buzzing with pride and anticipation ahead of her first trip to England for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, where the Nigar Sultana Joty-led side aims to build on their flawless qualification campaign.
Named Player of the Tournament at the recent Qualifier in Nepal (January 18 to February 1, 2026), Sobhana blazed 262 runs across seven innings at a strike rate of 145.55 and an average of 52.40, including a half-century, making at least 27 in each outing to finish as the second-highest run-scorer. This propelled Bangladesh to the top of the points table, unbeaten with 10 points from five games, securing their spot in the 10th edition amid a career T20I record of 848 runs in 48 innings at a strike rate of 97.13 and an average of 19.72 (54 matches, one half-century).
“It is a proud and emotional moment for us and Bangladesh women’s cricket,” Mostary shared, her voice laced with the weight of a breakthrough. “It will be our first time travelling to England, so everything will be different. We are very happy and excited to travel.” After years of grinding in T20Is, often stalling at 20-25, her evolution shines through. She impressed at the 2025 ODI World Cup in India with half-centuries against England and Australia, channelling that momentum into domestic consistency and the Nepal heroics.
Sobhana Mostary turned 24 today. She eyes continuity on seam-friendly English pitches. Drawing from a 2019 Qualifier in Scotland, she backs Bangladesh’s strengths: “There are lots of big teams there, but we are confident, our bowling and fielding is very good, and our batting is strong now too. We can’t wait to play there.” Since their 2014 T20 World Cup debut as hosts, Bangladesh have featured in every edition, snapping a decade-long win drought with a 2024 scalp over Scotland.
A bilateral series against Sri Lanka and a Scotland tri-series will sharpen them, but Mostary insists the shift is real: “I am quite satisfied with my performance. This is the first time I have achieved something like this consistency. I am happy and confident about going to England, and hopefully I can keep this going.”
Her gaze fixes on elite company, like South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt, the last edition’s leading run-scorer and a pinned idol on her Instagram. “Laura is a really humble person, and her batting is so important for her team. I look all the time at how she plays, how she hits the ball, to try and learn things for my own game.” With five group games ahead, Mostary vows more than one win: “We will go to England and play confidently. We believe in our team. This time, we play five group matches, so we will try to win more games and show our character.”
Sobhana Mostary steps into the unknown as Bangladesh’s batting linchpin, consistent, confident, and ready to convert starts into statement innings for her side on the big stage.
(Quotes sourced from ICC Press Release)
Loves all things female cricket