Despite being troubled by a few injuries, Mandhana is happy with the squad at her disposal.
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.
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 India pacer Pooja Vastrakar, who was grappling with an unspecified injury, was ruled out of the competition and has been replaced by slow left-arm orthodox bowler Parunika Sisodia, who was one of the main performers in India's title-winning campaign in the U-19 Women's T20 World Cup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.
Australia's Ashleigh Gardner replaced compatriot Beth Mooney as Gujarat Giants' captain for WPL 2025.
Images from the WPL match played between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and UP Warriorz in Bengaluru on Monday.
Mandhana had led RCB to the WPL triumph last year, the team's first title in franchise cricket.
The third edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL) will be played across four cities - Baroda, Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Lucknow - from February 14 to March 15, 2025.
Shafali Verma and Jess Jonassen smashed half-centuries as Delhi Capitals handed Royal Challengers Bengaluru a fourth consecutive defeat with a commanding nine-wicket win.
The Indian Premier League's overall brand value declined by 20 per cent to $9.6 billion in 2025 due to lost momentum in the league caused by tensions between India and Pakistan, and teams adjusting to their squad composition post the auction.
Delhi Capitals vice-captain Jemimah Rodrigues believes the long break between the last league match and the Women's Premier League final has revitalized the team and will work to their advantage in the title clash. The Capitals have qualified for their third straight WPL final after Mumbai Indians were defeated by Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the last league match at Mumbai on March 11.
Sciver-Brunt smashed a 39-ball 57, her second consecutive half-century, after taking two wickets for 26, as MI first bowled out GG for a modest 120 and then chased down the target, scoring 122 for 5 with 3.5 overs to spare.
The Indian women's cricket team's white-ball home series against Bangladesh next month has been postponed by the BCCI, which is aiming to work out an alternate assignment for the world champion side in the same window.
Beth Mooney smashed an unbeaten 96 as a dominant Gujarat Giants thrashed UP Warriorz by 81 runs in a one-sided WPL 2025 match in Lucknow on Monday.https://www.rediff.com/cricket/special/can-india-win-the-champions-trophy/20250303.htm
IMAGES from the WPL match played between Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz on Thursday.
'We have got lots of energy within the group and as I said before we are really excited about the opportunity that we have given ourselves to go out there and play our best game.'
All-rounder Dottin, who is currently in India with the West Indies team for the white-ball series, was the costliest among overseas players and was bought by the Giants for the second time in the auction.
Harmanpreet Kaur's quickfire fifty and Nat Sciver-Brunt's fine all-round showing lifted Mumbai Indians to their second Women's Premier League title.
On paper, India are overwhelming favourites to win the series against Chamari Athapaththu-led visitors.
UP Warriorz's 12 runs win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru knocked the defending champions out from the race to the play-offs on Saturday, confirming qualification for Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Giants in the process.
Perry (57, 34b, 6x4, 2x6) and Ghosh (64 not out, 27b, 7x4, 4x6) were in sublime touch as defending champions RCB scaled down the target of 202 with ease in the tournament opener.
Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru will be determined to give their home fans a parting victory when they take on a fatigued Delhi Capitals in Bengaluru on Saturday, before the Women's Premier League moves to Lucknow for its third leg.
Amanjot Kaur's superb all-round showing steered Mumbai Indians to a thrilling four-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
PHOTOS from the Women's Premier League match played between MI and UP Warriorz in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
MI will aim to seal their direct qualification to the final by finishing at the top when they face Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the final league match on Tuesday.
Needing 16 off two overs, Kashvee Gautam struck Shikha Pandey for a six off the last ball to bring down the equation to seven runs in the last over.
Indian multinational conglomerate Reliance Industries and Surrey County Cricket Club on Wednesday announced their partnership in The Hundred and expectedly renamed the franchise MI London.
Taking a dig at the controversial run-out decisions that played a big role in her team's last-ball, two-wicket defeat to Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians coach Charlotte Edwards said it was "really hard" to comprehend such calls that affect the eventual outcome of the match.
Shafali Verma (44) and Jess Jonassen's (61 not out) fireworks underlined Delhi Capitals' complete domination as they crushed Gujarat Giants by six wickets.
The Gujarat Giants will be hoping to improve their bowling and fielding after a disappointing defeat in their Women's Premier League season opener. They will face the UP Warriorz, led by Deepti Sharma, who will be looking to capitalize on their strong spin bowling attack. The match will be a crucial one for both teams as they seek to make their mark in the tournament.
'My parents have the biggest role in what I have become. They always told me that if you dream, dream big.'
The World Cup winners' medal is the latest addition to Verma's trophy cabinet, which also includes the 2023 Under-19 World Cup, the 2022 Asia Cup, the 2022 Asian Games gold medal and the 2022 Commonwealth Games silver.
However, Gardner produced an inspired knock, adding 55 runs off 42 balls with Laura Wolvaardt (22) to resurrect the innings.
Indian all-rounder Deepti Sharma was crowned Player of the Tournament in India's maiden ICC Women's World Cup triumph, says she still cannot believe she bowled the title-winning delivery.
Ashleigh Gardner led from the front with a blazing 58 off 31 balls as bottom-placed Gujarat Giants snapped their losing streak with a dominant six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Terming the Women's Premier League (WPL) a "great supply chain" for the national team, India head coach Amol Muzumdar on Thursday said his side is a frontrunner to win the ongoing T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
Delhi Capitals dished out an all-round effort to comfortably beat former champions Mumbai Indians by nine wickets
The wicketkeeper-batter has been retained by RCB alongside seasoned campaigners like Smriti Mandhana and Ellyse Perry for the next year's competition, and planning is in full swing to get their hands on the elusive trophy.
UP Warriorz will be looking to bounce back and avenge their earlier defeat when they take on a resurgent Gujarat Giants in a crucial return-leg Women's Premier League fixture in Lucknow on Monday.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hailed India's ICC Women's World Cup 2025 victory, calling it a historic moment for the nation and praising the team for "bringing the World Cup home."
On the eve of the opener of the second Women's Premier League season, the Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals squads were in for a treat!
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