Smriti Mandhana of India and Shafali Verma of India during The Final of the DP World Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2026 between India and Sri Lanka at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on September 13, 2026.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Shree Charani nominated for the ICC player of the month award, reached the highest rating points ever recorded in the ICC women’s T20I bowling rankings. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

India captain Harmanpreet Kaur said her side’s record-extending eighth women’s Asia Cup title was a result of consistently matching the high standards they had set for themselves, after the team crushed Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final here on Sunday.

Opening duo of Shafali Verma (68) and Smriti Mandhana (59) struck sensational half-centuries before the bowlers, led by Shree Charani (4/20), complemented them with a splendid effort as India avenged their last edition’s final loss to Sri Lanka to regain the title with ease.

“We set some really high standards for us, and we had to match them every day, and I’m pretty happy with the way we all came up together,” she said.

“We know how much potential we have, and we have a great team. I think we played to our standards because that’s what we discussed when we came here. we have certain standards, and we have to keep matching them every day.

“And we are very happy with the way we all performed. And I think the girls have done fabulously well throughout the entire tournament, setting 184 in a final. That’s a big thing.”

Talking about the openers, Harmanpreet said, “We all knew it’s not that easy to come back, but I think our openers did an absolutely great job for us, the way they both batted, Smriti and Shafali.

“I think Shafali had a very great tournament, and it’s good to see somebody like Shafali taking responsibility and doing the job with bat and ball. And I mean, I can’t ask anything else from them. It’s all about playing good cricket, and at the end of the day, I’m very happy overall.”

Head coach Amol Muzumdar credited India’s strong batting effort, singling out Shafali Verma’s power and charisma, Smriti Mandhana’s flair and the team’s three-pronged spin attack after India crushed Sri Lanka by 72 runs.

“Really proud of all the players and support staff. It was a fantastic pitch today and we came up good. Our batting was very strong. We started really nicely,” he said after the match.

“If you see throughout the fortnight, the pitch is a bit on the slower side and it turned quite a bit. So putting on a big score and defending it… we had three quality spinners, so that was the tactic,” he added.

On the opening combination of Shafali and Mandhana, Muzumdar said the contrasting styles of the two batters complemented each other well.

“Left-right combination. Shafali has got her own style, the power, the charisma, she puts the opposition on the back foot. Smriti has got that flair, they complement each other really well,” he said.

Muzumdar also said that the team had gone back to its previous plans against Sri Lanka and successfully executed them against a key opposition batter.

“We went back to the five-match series against Sri Lanka in December and how we dismissed Chamari, who is an important player for them. That was the plan and glad Deepti executed it,” he said.

For 18-year-old G Kamalini, who smashed a four and a six for her five-ball 15 to lift India to 183-5, said the victory was an experience she was still coming to terms with.

“It’s a different feeling. I still can’t digest it. I’m an 18-year-old kid. There’s lot of seniors here. I learned a lot from them, mind-wise. I think the mindset the seniors have, that whether they get out on 100 or 0, they have the same mindset, so I learned that from them,” Kamalini said.

Medium pacer Nandani Sharma, playing her first major tournament for India, said the team’s confidence was high and credited her teammates and support staff for the planning behind her partnership with Kranti Gaud.

“This is my first major tournament with India so it feels very good. I feel the credit goes to my team-mates and staff. They had made clear plans. Everyone’s confidence is very high and we’ll focus on our practice and hope to win the Asian Games as well,” she said.

On Deepti Sharma’s ability to deliver at crucial moments, Nandani said: “She delivers wickets where we need it the most. So we knew she’ll handle it. We just wanted to give a good start to the team.” Wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh credited the fans for creating a memorable atmosphere and said the team was confident of defending its total once it got a couple of wickets.

“The atmosphere has been really great how the fans came out and cheered for us. At the start the ball was coming on nicely and then it started to get slower. Our batters played really well and we knew if we got a couple of wickets, we’ll be able to stop them,” Richa said.

“The role I’ve been given, getting runs there helps the team. We’ll discuss as a team how we’ll celebrate. Haven’t thought about it yet, the game just got over,” she added.

Published – September 14, 2026 03:17 am IST

When Radha Yadav ran towards the chance offered by Beth Mooney at long-on, there was tension in the air at Lord’s. Under normal circumstances, you would expect Radha to take the catch with ease; she has taken much tougher, more spectacular ones all through her career. She is one of the best fielders in women’s cricket.

But at the Women’s T20 World Cup, she had been going through a terrible time. She was just failing to catch. It looked like she was incapable of even catching a cold. The 26-year-old did catch Mooney, though. And she was relieved and happy, she threw the ball down furiously.

The Women in Blue celebrated. They had posted what appeared to be a competitive total of 170 for four, thanks largely to skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s brilliant shot-making towards the end. But for her 27-ball 56, Australia would have finished off the match well ahead of schedule.

When Deepti Sharma accounted for Mooney, the Australian scorecard read 68 for three in 9.1 overs. Another 103 runs were still required in less than 11 overs. The Indian players, and the large crowd that came to cheer them on, had reasons to hope.

The one that took it away

Watching Mooney depart was her long-time teammate Ellyse Perry. She was joined by Ashleigh Gardner. Together, they ended India’s hopes of reaching the semifinals.

They forged what was one of the best partnerships you would come across at this level. There was still plenty of batting left for Australia — no team bats as deep as it — but they were determined to finish the job themselves. If one of them had been dismissed, India would have been back in the game. They did not get out until the match was decided. When Perry finally fell, skying a catch to Shafali Verma off the impressive Shree Charani, Australia needed just three to win.

Perry and Gardner showed yet again how crucial they are in a side filled with match-winners. This may be a team in transition, after the retirements of Meg Lanning and Alyssa Healy, but it remains well ahead of main rivals like England and India, especially in the shortest format.

In the semifinal against the West Indies at the Oval on Wednesday, Perry had to go back to the dressing room after playing just seven balls, retired hurt. But it was just a precaution, Mooney would later clarify. Gardner had another starring role. She made an unbeaten 35 off 20 balls to help Australia finish the chase of a very modest total with seven overs to spare.

Back in the groove

She had been amongst the wickets, too. That is good news for Australia ahead of Sunday’s final at Lord’s. Gardner is glad to have got her bowling rhythm back.

“I feel like I probably haven’t had the impact that I would have liked, especially with the ball,” she said shortly after winning the Player-of-the-Match award in the last-four clash. “I’ve probably just been a little bit inconsistent. When Sophie (Molineux) has thrown me the ball, I probably haven’t played the role that she has probably wanted.”

But Gardner delivered against the West Indies, taking two for 13. “In this game, I had that type of performance, certainly when it mattered,” she said. “It is always really pleasing. I guess that it gives me a lot of confidence going forward.”

Shift in mindset

The 29-year-old said it was more of a mindset thing. “I feel like I just tried to make my game really simple. I focused on looking at the stumps when I was bowling. That sounds really silly, but when I was narrowing my focus, I could execute a little better. We knew that keeping the stumps in play for a long period of time, just with the variability in the bounce, really helped.”

Gardner felt that her performance against India was a morale-booster. “Cricket is a very humbling sport at times, but you try to ride that confidence to really utilise it,” she said. “Cricket is such a unique game where you can feel like you are hitting the ball well but then you make no runs. So I guess it is about trying to take out the positives that you can.”

Looking back at Australia’s convincing win over India, Gardner said she enjoyed the 100-run partnership with Perry. “That was one of the best partnerships I have been involved in. There are not too many other people within this unit that I have played so much cricket with. I have played with Perry for well over 10 years now, so we have a great understanding of each other’s game.”

Blindly trusting each other

Both had tremendous trust in each other. “We were really specific and deliberate in the way we were speaking in the middle,” she said. “Understanding each other and giving each other options out there… to have that is pretty cool.”

Perry relished that alliance just as much. “It was a really enjoyable partnership with Ash,” said the woman regarded by many as the greatest female cricketer of all time. “Having had the opportunity to watch the way the first innings played out, we knew that it was sort of possible to accelerate through the middle and back end.”

She was all praise for Gardner’s approach. “The way Ash came out was really important in the context of the game. I thought that she shifted the momentum beautifully. We spoke a lot about targeting the first couple of balls of an over, and she did that incredibly well. It just gave us some momentum in the chase. On a good ground, once you get that, you sort of put yourself in a good position. So, it was a lot of fun.”

Gardner was as effusive in the praise of Perry. “She is like red wine,” Gardner said. “She is someone who has gotten better and better. Just the evolution of her game.. she has known that the global game has gone at such a fast pace and that it doesn’t settle or slow down for anyone. So she knows that she needs to keep up with that pace.”

Gardner admires Perry’s bravery. “It can be quite hard at times when you feel like you don’t have that confidence, but she is someone who always tries to take the game on. For someone with so much experience and so much willingness to keep evolving, it just shows younger players like me that there is no real ceiling on that stuff. She is a fantastic leader within our group, within that space, and generally as well.”

Unique in their own way

While Perry is at the top of her game more often than not, she stressed that every tournament had its own challenges. “This one has been extremely enjoyable and the quality of cricket that has been played right across the competition… the response from the English public to watch the matches has been amazing, too,” she said. “The atmosphere at various grounds has been so cool to play at. Beating India was a real highlight.”

Perry described skipper Molineux as “unique”. “Every captain I play with is unique, but Soph brings a very unique style,” Perry said. “She is such a people’s person. She makes everyone laugh. She knows when to have fun, when to be serious.

“She makes sure that they are heard all the time and are valued for their contribution to the group. I hope that kind of comes across in the way we are playing because it’s been so much fun. It doesn’t guarantee you anything but when you are playing with that kind of enjoyment, it creates an opportunity for a team to do some really good things.”

The two brave women are now ready for the final. They will go into that match at Lord’s with impressive numbers.

Perry has 2,482 T20I runs and 131 wickets, while Gardner, who has played lesser games, has 1,630 runs and 84 wickets.

It is to be recalled that Australia hasn’t won an ICC event since 2023. “Not having any trophies in the cabinet has probably been frustrating over the last 18 months,” Gardner said.

“It is really pleasing that going forward we can take the confidence out of what we have done. Hopefully, we win another trophy on Sunday”.

Shafali Verma plays a shot during the ICC Women’s World Cup Final match against South Africa in Navi Mumbai.
| Photo Credit: Emmanual Yogini

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Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, WPL 2025, Highlights© BCCI

Delhi Capitals (DC) pulled off a nail-biting two-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians (MI) in the ongoing Women’s Premier League (WPL) on Saturday. The match witnessed some electrifying moments, with Shafali Verma’s aggressive innings at the top. Former India captain Mithali Raj, speaking on JioHotstar, lauded Shafali’s fearless approach. “I think anyone stepping into Shafali Verma’s shoes would acknowledge how she has never shown a defensive approach. Right from the second ball, she started scoring runs, playing her shots with her usual flair. That’s just her style,” she said, as quoted from a release by JioHotstar.

Shafali’s knock kept DC in the hunt, but her dismissal turned out to be a turning point in the contest.

Analyzing her wicket, Mithali added, “The only way to dismiss her today was to outthink her, and I understand that feeling because I’ve been in that situation myself. At one point, she had too much time and wasn’t sure where to place the ball. Just before her dismissal, the fielding side adjusted their setup, bringing mid-on up and pushing deep square leg back because she had found boundaries there. She instinctively aimed to clear mid-on but ended up playing into the fielder’s hands, resulting in a crucial wicket.”

Coming to the match, chasing 165, DC was left 109/5 in 14.5 overs despite a fine 60-run opening stand. However, Niki Prasad and Sarah took down the equation to 10 runs off the last over despite wickets falling at other end. With two runs needed on final ball, the pair of Arundhati Reddy and Radha Yadav completed a risky double and it was worth all the toil.

After Delhi Capitals won the toss and elected to bowl first, they were off to a fine start as a low grab by skipper Meg Lanning on a Shikha Pandey delivery sent Hayley Matthews packing for a duck on the second ball. MI was 0/1.

In the next over, Alice Capsey gave away 19 runs, including five runs after a four on wide, two fours from Yastika Bhatia and one boundary from Nat-Sciver Brunt.

Shikha got her second wicket in the fifth over, beating Yastika’s stumps as she was gone for 11 in nine balls. MI was 32/2 in 4.2 overs.

At the end of powerplay, MI was 41/2 in six overs, with Brunt (22*) joined by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (2*) unbeaten.

With a four by Brunt, MI reached the 50-run mark in 7.1 overs. In the same over, she and Kaur hit Radha for a four and six more, looting 18 runs in total.

The duo kept the run-rate up and brought up their 50-run stand in 30 balls. In 10 overs, MI were 87/2, with Brunt (45*) and Kaur (24*) unbeaten.

In the 11th over, Kaur went on a blitz against Annabel Sutherland, smashing her for three fours and a six before debutant Niki Prasad caught her, sending her back for 42 in 22 balls, with four boundaries and three sixes. MI was 105/3 in 10.5 overs.

Sciver Brunt reached her fourth WPL fifty in 36 balls, with nine fours. But after that, there was one wicket falling per over from overs 14-16, leaving MI struggling at 146/6. Amelia Kerr, S Sajana and Amanjot Kaur went back to the pavilion for single digits.

Sciver held the innings together, helping MI reach the 150-run mark in 16.5 overs.MI continued their implosion towards the end, bundling out for 164 runs in 19.1 overs. Brunt was the top-scorer, with 80* in 59 balls, with 13 fours.

Sutherland (3/34) was the top bowler for DC. Shikha got two while Minnu Mani and Capsey got one each.

During the run-chase of 165, Delhi was off to a fine start as Shafali Varma looted 22 runs in the second over bowled by Saika Ishaque, including four boundaries and a six.

In the sixth over, Shafali launched Matthews for two successive fours, bringing up the 50-run mark in 5.1 overs and a six. However, a fine catch at short mid-wicket from Amanjot meant the bowler had the last laugh. Shafali was gone for 43 in 18 balls, with seven fours and two sixes. DC was 60/1 in 5.5 overs.

In the next over, Lanning’s knock of 15 in 19 balls, with three fours was ended by Shabnim Ismail as she castled her stumps. DC was 60/2 in 6.1 overs.

All-rounders Amelia and Sciver got Jemimah Rodrigues (2) and Annabel Sutherland (13) in quick succession, derailing DC’s chase, and sinking them to 76/4 in 8.5 overs.

At the end of 10 overs, DC were 83/4, with Capsey (3*) and Prasad (5*) unbeaten.DC reached the 100-run mark in 13 overs, with the help of a four by Niki.

An attempted loft by Capsey went into hands of Ismail at long-on, removing her at the hands of Amelia for 16 in 18 balls. DC was 109/5 in 14.5 overs.

Some hits by Prasad and Sarah Bryce helped DC bring down the equation to 21 in two overs, but Mathews had removed Bryce for 21 in 12 balls, with two fours and a six.

The 19th over was a thrilling one. While Shikha was run out for three, Radha Yadav tonked the final ball for a six, bringing down the equation to 10 runs in the last over.

The final over started with Niki hitting a boundary. But the dismissal of Niki on the second-last ball for 35 in 33 balls, with four boundaries, left DC with two to get on the final ball.DC chased down the total on the last ball, with Arundhati Reddy (2*) and Radha Yadav (9*) completing a risky double.

Amelia (2/21) and Mathews (2/32) were top wicket-takers for MI. Ismail, Sciver and Sajana got one each.

As the Indian women’s cricket team shatters records in Ireland, explosive batter Shafali Verma can only watch the girls from her home on television. Touted as the next big thing in the Indian women’s team, Shafali was dropped from the squad over a poor run of form. But, the batter has shown great intent to learn from her mistakes and emerge as a better player. Recalling the setback when she was dropped from the team, Shafali said that she didn’t break the news to her father as he had a heart attack just two days before her omission from the team.

Shafali was part of the ODI series against New Zealand, where she registered scores of 33, 11, and 12. The selectors decided to remove her from the team and get Pratika Rawal as a replacement. Rawal has already done wonders at the top of the batting order. In six matches, she has scored a century and three half-centuries already.

“It’s not easy to get over it. I didn’t want to reveal it because my father had a heart attack about two days before I got dropped from the team. I hid the news from him till he got better. He was in the hospital. I told him a week later,” Shafali told the Indian Express.

Since making recovery, Shafali’s father has been constantly working to get his daughter to improve her skills and earn a recall to the national team.

“Father knows everything. Sometimes as kids even we forget our strengths, but they don’t forget,” Shafali said. “He reminded me of the workouts and drills from my childhood… These are my strengths, and sometimes you need to work on them to remember how good you are at them.”

In the two domestic tournaments Shafali has featured in since being dropped, she has aggregated scores of 527 and 414 runs in 12 matches. But, the young batter also knows the areas she has to improve on.

“The constant work is on areas like when deliveries don’t come to my strengths, how do I take singles, how do I rotate strike, how do I build my innings. Everyone knows my strengths, but the constant goal is to mentally get smarter by learning how to build an innings better,” she added.

Top-order batter Shafali Verma was on Tuesday dropped from India’s 16-member women’s team for the three-match ODI series in Australia in December after a string of poor performances in the past year. The BCCI selectors seem to have once again lost patience with the 20-year-old right-handed batter, whose recent ODI form has been disappointing. Shafali has scored just 108 runs in six matches this year with 33 being the highest. She was dropped in December last year from the team midway during the home ODI series against Australia on the basis of her poor run, before making a comeback against South Africa in June this year in Bengaluru.

In fact, the youngster, rated as the next big thing in Indian women’s cricket when she broke into the team in 2021, has not scored a ODI half century since making an unbeaten 71 against Sri Lanka in Pallekele in July 2022. Her next highest score was a 49 against the same opponent in the same series.

Four other players — Uma Chetry, Dayalan Hemalatha, Shreyanka Patil and Sayali Satghare — were also left out from the squad that played in India’s 2-1 home series win against New Zealand in Ahmedabad last month.

Harleen Deol, Richa Ghosh, Minnu Mani, Titas Sadhu and Priya Punia are the five players who did not face New Zealand but were named in the team for the Australia series.

The first two ODIs will be played at the Allan Border Field in Brisbane on December 5 and 8 before the action shifts to WACA Ground, Perth on December 11 for the final match of the series, which is a part of the ICC Women’s Championship.

India’s squad for three-match ODI series: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Priya Punia, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harleen Deol, Yastika Bhatia (WK), Richa Ghosh (WK), Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma, Minnu Mani, Priya Mishra, Radha Yadav, Titas Sadhu, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Saima Thakor.