In absence of Pooja, RCB handed the responsibility of bowling to new recruits -- England left-arm spinner Linsey Smith, Arundhati Reddy and de Klerk as they managed to keep the opponents to 154-6.
Both teams will be hoping their key players step up as the league phase reaches a decisive stage.
Table-toppers Royal Challengers Bengaluru will look to make amends with the bat after two consecutive defeats and lock their berth in the final when they take on a depleted UP Warriorz in the Women's Premier League in Vadodara
Delhi Capitals will aim to upset defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru -- the only unbeaten team in WPL 2026 with five wins in a row.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru will look to extend their winning run when they face Gujarat Giants in the WPL 2026 match in Vadodara on Monday.
Pacer Pooja Vastrakar, who wrecked Aussies with a four-wicket haul in their first innings of the one-off Test, said on Thursday that the Indian Women's plan was to exploit the visitors' vulnerability against incoming deliveries bowled with a wobble seam.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru will look to build on those gains when they take on a star-studded UP Warriorz in the WPL in Navi Mumbai on Monday.
Having retained the majority of their squad, MI will be the team to beat given their formidable batting, but Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Delhi Capitals will be out to spoil their party.
'A total of 19 players have registered in the highest base-price bracket of Rs.50 lakh, 11 players in the Rs. 40 lakh bracket, and 88 players in the Rs.30 lakh bracket.'
When there was constant criticism, Harman and Smriti kept the team together: Neetu David
Malhotra said India will be strong contenders to land the title in the showpiece, citing the right blend of youth and experience in the Harmanpreet Kaur-led squad.
Young Indian bowlers Charani and Goud have transitioned into international cricket seamlessly: Rana
India eye maiden women's T20I series win over England; hosts to miss injured skipper Brunt
India women will be keen to internalise the conditions and character of venues in England ahead of next year's World Cup during the five-match T20I series against the hosts, beginning with the opening game on Saturday.
India women's team captain Harmanpreet Kaur, her deputy Smriti Mandhana and all-rounder Deepti Sharma were retained in Grade A, the highest category of central contracts offered by BCCI.
The WPL starts on Friday with a match between defending champions RCB and Gujarat Giants in Vadodara.
Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Shafali Verma, Meg Lanning and Harmanpreet Kaur were some of the big names retained by their respective franchises for the next edition of the Women's Premier League.
South Africa bounced back to defeat India by 12 runs in the first women's T20I to secure their first win of the multi-format tour
Harmanpreet, Mandhana, Jemimah hold key to India's T20 World Cup campaign
The second Women's T20I between India and South Africa in Chennai was called off due to rain after South Africa set a challenging target of 177 for 6.
Amanjot Kaur, who was sidelined by a back stress fracture requiring surgery and a ligament tear in her hand after last year's WPL, claimed three wickets for 22 runs before blasting a 27-ball 34 to help MI chase down RCB's 167 with one ball to spare in the WPL match in Bengaluru on Friday.
Jemimah Rodrigues struck a crucial fifty as India secured a comprehensive 20-run victory against West Indies in a warm-up game ahead of the Women's T20 World Cup in Dubai on Sunday.
India will have to regroup quickly and iron out the imbalances in team combination when they face arch-rivals Pakistan in a crucial second group A match of the Women's T20 World Cup in Dubai on Sunday
The inaugural edition's winner Mumbai Indians will bank on their core group of players while two-time finalists Delhi Capitals will expect fireworks from Shafali Verma when they face-off in the second game of the Women's Premier League here on Saturday. The finalists of the first WPL in 2023, both Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals made it to the knockouts in the second edition last year but lost to the eventual champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the eliminator and the final respectively. Those defeats were certainly not reflective of how well MI and DC had fared until the knockouts stage, with Harmanpreet Kaur's side finishing second in the points table with five wins in eight matches and Meg Lanning's team topping it with six wins in as many outings. The winners of WPL 2023, Mumbai Indians tend to lean on their core group of players both overseas and Indian and a similar approach can be expected this year, with only a few changes taking place in terms of squad composition. India pacer Pooja Vastrakar, who was grappling with an unspecified injury, was ruled out of the competition and has been replaced by slow left-arm orthodox bowler Parunika Sisodia, who was one of the main performers in India's title-winning campaign in the U-19 Women's T20 World Cup recently. Mumbai Indians have let go of England's Issy Wong, who took the first-ever WPL hat-trick in 2023, after the player lost form and the franchise found the leader of their attack in South Africa's Shabnim Ismail. Among domestic talents, another member of the U-19 T20 World Cup winning squad G Kamalini would be one to watch out for, having finished as the third highest scorer in the competition with 143 runs in seven matches. Apart from a strong leader in Harmanpreet, MI have strong figures from other international sides such as Nat Sciver-Brunt (England), Hayley Matthews (West Indies), Amelia Kerr (New Zealand), as well as South Africans Nadine de Klerk, Shabnim Ismail and Chloe Tryon. While Yastika Bhatia is MI's No 1 wicketkeeper-batter, other Indian players in Saika Ishaque, Sajana Sajeevan, uncapped Akshita Maheshwari and Amanjot Kaur will be expected to play their roles to perfection. On their part, Delhi Capitals will be keen to do one better after finishing as runner-up for two times in a row ever since the competition began. One of the most consistent teams in the competition, the Lanning-led Delhi have strong talent base across departments but the key will be to deliver in crucial matches. All eyes will be on the explosive Indian batter Shafali who has responded to her exclusion from the Indian side with runs in domestic cricket. She forms a lethal opening pair with Lanning at the top, while the likes of Australia's Annabel Sutherland, England's Alice Capsey and India's Jemimah Rodrigues form the core of their middle order. All-rounder Sutherland will hope to draw inspiration from her recent success of having struck 163 in the only Test of the women's Ashes followed by winning the highest individual honour in Australian cricket. While Delhi boasts of three wicketkeeper-batters in India's Taniyaa Bhatia, Nandini Kashyap and Scotland's Sarah Bryce, their bowling looks settled with Marizanne Kapp as the leader of the attack, backed by Australia's Jess Jonassen, India's Radha Yadav and Shikha Pandey as well as Titas Sadhu.
Harmanpreet Kaur was on Thursday retained as India captain for the three Women's ODIs against New Zealand while the selectors also picked four uncapped players for the series starting October 24.
India, having secured two convincing victories, will be looking to complete a clean sweep of the women's ODI series against Ireland in the third and final match. The Indian team is brimming with confidence after a series of impressive batting performances, particularly from Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana, who have formed a formidable opening partnership. Despite their strong batting, India's bowling has shown some vulnerabilities, allowing Ireland to score a respectable 254/7 in the previous match. The absence of key players like Shafali Verma and Harmanpreet Kaur has given opportunities for emerging players to shine. The series has highlighted the impressive performance of Pratika Rawal, who has made the most of her chances. The Irish team has been led by the strong performances of Gaby Lewis, Christina Coulter-Reilly, and Leah Paul, but their fielding has been a concern. The match is scheduled to begin at 11 am in Rajkot.
India and Mumbai Indians captain Harmanpreet Kaur believes the upcoming edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL) will play a crucial role in the team's preparation for the ODI World Cup, which India is hosting later this year. She also highlighted the impressive performance of the India U-19 women's team, who recently won their second T20 World Cup title. Mumbai Indians' bowling coach and team mentor, Jhulan Goswami, expressed confidence in the team's composition and the impact of the WPL on women's cricket in India.
India opener Shafali admitted that Sri Lanka are no longer only dependent on their skipper Chamarai Athapaththu.
The Women's Asia Cup is set for a blockbuster start when defending champions India take on arch-foes Pakistan in Dambulla on Friday.
ndia will not get a better opponent than New Zealand, which is not a fancied side like its Trans-Tasman neighbour. But the two-time runners-up are as tough as nails.
Harmanpreet has moved up three places and now has 613 rating points while Shafali rose two rungs
Vastarkar was the big mover up the ODI charts for all-rounders, with the 24-year-old gaining four places to improve to 18th.
Smriti Mandhana showered praise on skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and said that the 35-year-old is fierce and always gives her best.
Australia were bowled out for 219 in their first innings -- their lowest total against India in Tests.
India Women succumbed to their sixth consecutive defeat and eighth in a row at home
Mandhana, the best batter in the side, has failed to get going thus far on the slow wickets of the UAE where stroke making has proved to be extremely tough.
Shreyanka Patil, Mannat Kashyap, Saika Ishaque and Titas Sadhu were on Monday included for the first time in the Indian women's ODI squad for the upcoming limited overs assignment against Australia.
India along with New Zealand and Pakistan are in contention for the last remaining semi-final spot from Group A.
India inflicted a crushing 10-wicket defeat on South Africa in the one-off Women's Test in Chennai
Just hours ahead of India's Women's T20 World Cup semifinal against Australia, the Indian team had a selection headache on their hands as they were dealt a massive injury blow.
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