NEW DELHI: Following an impressive series against the West Indies, the Indian women’s cricket team, led by Smriti Mandhana in the absence of regular captain Harmanpreet Kaur, is set to face Ireland in what will be the first bilateral series between the two nations.
The series opener, an ODI match, is scheduled to take place on Friday. India’s recent performance saw them securing a clean sweep in the ODI series against the West Indies with a 3-0 victory, and a 2-1 win in the T20 series.
Mandhana played a pivotal role in these victories, emerging as the leading run-scorer in both formats with significant contributions of 148 runs in the ODIs and 193 runs in the T20s, including a streak of five consecutive half-centuries.
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With Harmanpreet Kaur and fast bowler Renuka Singh being rested for this series, the focus shifts to other members of the squad to fill the void.
Harleen Deol, who was the top scorer in the ODI series against the West Indies with 160 runs, Pratika Rawal, and Jemimah Rodrigues, both of whom also performed well, scoring 134 and 112 runs respectively, are expected to play crucial roles.
The absence of Renuka Singh, the leading wicket-taker in the ODI series against the West Indies, will be a significant gap to fill. The responsibility in the bowling department will be on the shoulders of newcomers Titas Sadhu and Saima Thakor, alongside vice-captain and off-spinner Deepti Sharma, who will be instrumental following her career-best performance in the last ODI against the West Indies.
India Women vs Ireland Women Squads:
India: Smriti Mandhana (C), Deepti Sharma (VC), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Uma Chetry (wk), Richa Ghosh (wk), Tejal Hasabnis, Raghvi Bist, Minnu Mani, Priya Mishra, Tanuja Kanwer, Titas Sadhu, Saima Thakor, Sayali Satghare.
Ireland:Gaby Lewis (C), Ava Canning, Christina Coulter Reilly, Alana Dalzell, Laura Delany, Georgina Dempsey, Sarah Forbes, Arlene Kelly, Joanna Loughran, Aimee Maguire, Leah Paul, Orla Prendergast, Una Raymond-Hoey, Freya Sargent, Rebecca Stokell.
The Indian squad also includes all-rounders Raghvi Bist and Sayali Satghare, who are anticipated to contribute both with the bat and in the field. Bist, in particular, will be looking to make an impact after her debut in the T20 series against the West Indies.
On the other side, the Ireland team, captained by Gaby Lewis with Orla Prendergast as the vice-captain, aims to challenge the Indian team despite a challenging historical record. Ireland has yet to secure a victory against India in their 12 ODI encounters, including a narrow five-run defeat in their last meeting during the 2023 T20 World Cup.
The Irish team, however, boasts several quality all-rounders, including Prendergast, who has gained valuable experience in Australia and the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), and will be a key player for Ireland in this series.
