Mumbai, Aug 27: As expected, Harmanpreet Kaur has been named as the skipper of the Indian team for the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup in UAE. Smriti Mandhana has been named her deputy.
Harmanpreet would be leading the 15-member squad announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday. Three players have been named as travelling reserves as well.
Two players wicket-keeper Yatsika Bhatia and spinner Shreyanka Patil, who were injured earlier, have been named in the 15-member squad, perhaps expecting them to be match-fit before the T20 World Cup.
As per the schedule, the tournament will be played from October 3 to October 20 in Dubai and Sharjah. The 23-match event will feature the top 10 women’s teams in the world, who will be divided into two groups of five each.
India is placed in Group A along with defending champions Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand and Sri Lanka. The teams in Group B are - Bangladesh, England, South Africa, West Indies, and Scotland.
The fixture reveals that each team will play four group matches and the top two teams from each group will advance to the semifinals.
Harmanpreet & Co will begin their campaign against New Zealand. The Women In Blue are also scheduled to play two warm-up games against South Africa and West Indies, the fixture revealed.
India's World Cup squad:
Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Smriti Mandhana (Vice Captain), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), Yastika Bhatia (wicket-keeper)*, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Dayalan Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil* and S. Sajeevan.
Travelling reserves:
Uma Chetry (wicket-keeper), Tanuja Kanwer, Saima Thakor.