Following two convincing wins in the Women's T20 World Cup, Harmanpreet Kaur-led Indian women's team will have their task cut out when they take on England at St. George's Park in Gqeberha on Saturday.
The five teams -- Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, RCB, Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz -- will be bidding for 90 players in a list of 409.
Two weeks after the men's team coasted to a 4-0 Ashes triumph against Joe Root's England, holders Australia defended a modest total of 205-9 at Canberra's Manuka Oval to take an 8-4 lead in the multi-format series.
Mithali Raj dropped a place to seventh but star opener Smriti Mandhana moved up to ninth position
Mumbai Indians captain Harmanpreet Kaur feels that focussing on winning crucial moments of matches and not the ultimate prize worked for her side.
England all-rounder Nat Sciver smashed a record-equalling half century before the bowlers put the struggling Indian batters under pressure to ensure an 18 run-win for the hosts via Duckworth-Lewis method in the rain-curtailed first T20I in Northampton.
Teen sensation Shafali Verma is set to make her eagerly-anticipated ODI debut as the Indian women's team seeks white-ball course correction against a strong world champion English side in the first game of the three-match series, in Bristol, on Sunday.
The incumbent England skipper Heather Knight backed under-fire Smriti Mandhana, the costliest player in WPL, who had a poor run with the bat, to come back stronger.
India and England are set to play a one-off Test from Wednesday
WPL witnessed special performances from some of the best cricketers in the world
IMAGES from the Women's Premier League match played between Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals in Navi Mumbai on Monday.
The first five games of the ICC event have caused a lot of movement in the women's ODI player rankings with Australia skipper Meg Lanning climbing up two spots in the rankings for batters.
Smriti Mandhana, on Friday, rose three rungs to fourth but Jemimah Rodrigues dropped to seventh in the latest ICC women's T20 International rankings
'We have got a team of a lot of stars. It has probably given the freedom at the top of the order'
India posted 153/6 in their 20 overs after winning the toss and England chased the target down in 18.4 overs to clinch the series
The stage is set for the inaugural edition of the Women's Premier League, which will get underway in Mumbai on Saturday.
Opener Alyssa Healy bludgeoned England's bowlers in a furious 170 as Australia set a mammoth victory target of 357 in the Women's World Cup final in Christchurch on Sunday.
Australia beat India by nine runs to win the Commonwealth Games women's T20 cricket gold medal on Sunday but the real winner was the sport which delivered compelling competition and boosted its case to be included in the Olympics.
The hosts cannot afford to take England lightly, as the visiting team boasts of some of the big names in women's cricket.
India would like to keep the winning momentum going and maintain its stay in the top four
The ECB has been trying to convince both the BCCI and the Cricket South Africa to agree to play a tri-series later this year but nothing has been finalised as yet.
Call it destiny or design, Goswami's last hurrah is taking at Lord's.
Images from the Women's World Cup match between India and England, in Mount Maunganui, on Wednesday.
India captain Mithali Raj's excellent show in the three-match series against England has helped her grab the No.1 position in the MRF Tyres ICC Women's ODI Player Rankings for the eighth time in her stellar 22-year international career.
Heather Knight's majestic maiden T20I century helped England to a record-breaking 98-run victory over Thailand in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup match at Manuka Oval, in Canberra, on Wednesday. In the day's second match, played later, Pakistan claimed the scalp of the West Indies outplaying the 2016 winners in an eight-wicket victory.
Danni Wyatt scored her second one-day international century as champions England crushed South Africa by 137 runs in Christchurch on Thursday to set up a mouthwatering Women's World Cup final against heavyweights Australia.
Opener Rachael Haynes smashed a scintillating 130 as Australia scored a 12-run win over defending champions England in a high-scoring ICC Women's World Cup match, in Hamilton, on Saturday. In another match, South Africa handed Bangladesh a 32-run defeat in Dunedin.
Debutants Sneh Rana and Taniya Bhatia shared an unbeaten 108-run stand for the ninth wicket to secure a memorable draw for India in the one-off women's Test against England, in Bristol, on Saturday.
"No words can do that game justice! What a game of cricket! Congratulations @englandcricket .. you deserve it!"
The West Indies pulled off another upset as they beat England by seven runs to secure their first-ever ICC Women's World Cup victory over the defending champions.
India level series as England pressed self destruct button towards end
Tammy Beaumont and Nat Sciver's aggressive unbeaten fifties beat India Women by eight wickets
From a strong 167 for none, India lost five wickets for the addition of just 16 runs before ending the day at 187 for five.
Teenage Indian batting sensation Shafali Verma on Wednesday rose to the top spot in the ICC women's T20 International rankings, riding on her stellar run at the T20 World Cup in Australia. The 16-year-old Verma takes over from New Zealand's Suzie Bates, who had been the top batter since October 2018 after wresting the spot from West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor.
India women couldn't have asked for a better start to the series, defeating World champions England by 66 runs in the opener at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday.
England has won both of the Women's World Cups held on home soil and will have the chance to make it a hat-trick on Sunday at Lord's after claiming a dramatic two-wicket win over South Africa in the final over of the semi-final in Bristol, on Tuesday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances