India are entering the 2026 Women's T20 World Cup as ODI world champions. They make a strong case for doing a double, but need to overcome a challenging group, writes Abhishek Mukherjee.
On paper, it seems that India have not been one of the more successful teams at the Women's T20 World Cup. After all, their only appearance at a final – that night in 2020 when the MCC crowd swelled to 86,174 – had resulted in a humiliating defeat against Australia.
Dig deep, and things may not seem as dire. India did not lose a game until the semi-final in 2018 and the final in 2020. In 2023 (and the World Cup-sized Commonwealth Games in 2022), they conceded winning positions to eventual champions Australia. In 2024, they were pitted in the same group as Australia and eventual champions New Zealand.
Thus, it will not be unfair to summarise India’s woes at the T20 World Cup to their inability to conquer Australia, the Final Boss of the women’s game since goodness-knows-when. Over the past decade, India have knocked Australia out of the Women's ODI World Cup in 2017 and 2025; have won a T20I series in the country earlier this year; and have won two of the last five encounters at the T20 World Cup. That monkey is off their back now.
also read: Pakistan preview, Women's T20 World Cup 2026: Onus on teammates to back captain Sana Mir
The Group of Death – again
India are placed in a group that also features South Africa, the most rapidly improving team in women’s cricket, and Australia. A defeat in either game will significantly increase their chances of a first-round elimination – even if the other three teams do not stun them. Indian fans will remember their unceremonious exit in 2024.
However, things have changed since that tournament. Two more editions of the WPL have been played, pitting Indians against the best sides in the world as well as providing selectors with greater clarity.
The inclusion of Bharti Fulmali emphasises the latter point. After two forgettable outings in 2019, she had been left out of the squad for seven years, but is now back in the mix after two stunning WPL seasons. With a 250-run cut-off among Indians across the 2025 and 2026 WPL, only Richa Ghosh (163.8) had scored at a quicker rate than her 159.5.
The injuries to Amanjot Kaur and her like-for-like replacement Kashvee Gautam have left India without a seam-bowling all-rounder, offsetting the team balance. India have tried to cover that base with Radha Yadav, the in-form India A captain, but they cannot pick a third spinner in England (Shree Charani and Deepti Sharma are probably shoo-ins). As a result, they may end up going in with either a batter or a bowler short. To sum up, team balance may be an issue.
Also read: Batting depth or extra bowler: How should India replace Amanjot Kaur in their T20 World Cup XI?
The big guns
Eyes will be on Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana, one of the most dangerous opening pairs across formats. Always a prolific scorer, Mandhana took her time to match the ever-changing tempo: she struck at only 129 until the end of 2025. In 2026, that number reads 146. On the other hand, no batter has scored more runs than Verma at a quicker pace, while only Grace Harris meets the bill in all T20.
Despite not having the benefit of the powerplay, Richa Ghosh strikes at 145 in T20Is. With her, the biggest conundrum has always been her entry point: India will want her to be around when the death specialists return as well as use her to take on the spinners in the middle overs. With a hitter as versatile as Ghosh, that is the only concern.
It is hard to believe, but despite debuting in this decade, Renuka Singh Thakur already has more T20I wickets than Jhulan Goswami. In England, she has 12 wickets from eight games at 15.83 while going at 6.12 an over. Her lone, valiant effort against Australia at Birmingham in 2022 is still fresh in the mind.
India squad at the 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup:
Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Richa Ghosh (wk), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Shree Charani, Shreyanka Patil, Bharti Fulmali, Radha Yadav, Nandani Sharma
India schedule at the 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup
All timings local
June 14, 2.30pm: v Pakistan, Edgbaston
June 17, 2.30pm: v Netherlands, Leeds
June 21, 2.30pm: v South Africa, Manchester
June 25, 2.30pm: v Bangladesh, Manchester
June 28, 2.30pm: v Australia, Lord’s
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