Harmanpreet Kaur-led 16-member Indian women's team will take on Bangladesh in a five-match T20I series, which gets underway in Sylhet from Sunday. The India-Bangladesh women's cricket rivalry took an unpleasant turn when Harmanpreet Kaur's outburst against the umpires during India's tour last year disappointed the host. Nine months later, with a focus on the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September-October, India and Bangladesh will kick off their preparations with a five-T20I series in Sylhet on Sunday. Indian Women’s Cricket Team To Play Five-Match T20I Series Against Bangladesh From April 28.
Despite a recent 3-0 home loss to Australia, Bangladesh has not made significant changes to their team for this series while India's most recent T20I series resulted in a 2-1 loss at home to Australia in December-January. However, numerous of India's international stars rediscovered their form in the 2024 WPL, and with some new faces in the mix, they will try to continue that momentum into international cricket as well.
Mandhana, who guided Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)to the Women's Premier League (WPL) title earlier this year, will be Harmanpreet's deputy. However, Jemimah Rodrigues is out due to an injury. Sajeevan Sajana and Asha Sobhana have been named to India's team for the first time following good performances in the WPL. It will be the Indian women's first international appearance since a three-match T20 series against Australia in January.
Both teams will be eager to experiment and identify their best combinations in these five T20Is before heading to Sri Lanka for the Asia Cup in July, which precedes the T20 World Cup later this year.