BCCI on Thursday announced India women’s squad for ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 and the New Zealand series. One of the biggest surprises was the omission of batter Jemimah Rodrigues, who had been an integral part of the team until India’s last limited-overs assignment in Australia.
The All-India Women’s Selection Committee of BCCI on Wednesday picked the squad for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022. Team India play their first World Cup fixture against Pakistan on March 6th, 2022 at the Bay Oval, Tauranga. The squad announced by BCCI will also feature in the 5-match ODI series against New Zealand starting from 11th February 2022.
BCCI Announced India Women’s Squad For 2022 Women’s World Cup And 5 ODIs vs NZ; Mithali Raj To Lead While Jemimah Rodrigues And Shikha Pandey Misses Out
Mithali Raj will lead the 15-member squad with Harmanpreet Kaur named as her deputy. Shikha Pandey also remains absent in the Indian squad, while Sneh Rana – who impressed with her all-around skills across formats in 2021 retains her place in the side.
Left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht, opening batter Jemimah Rodrigues, and fast bowler Shikha Pandey are not included in the 15-member squad for the Women’s World Cup. Jemimah Rodrigues failed to score in double digits during the last year in all her international assignments, but she was in good touch during The Hundred in England and the subsequent Big Bash League in Australia. Shikha Pandey was similarly off-colour during her national duties.
Talking of the World Cup schedule, after facing Pakistan on 6th March, India women will rub shoulders against New Zealand (March 10), West Indies (March 12), England (March 16), Australia (March 19), Bangladesh (March 22), and South Africa (March 27) in the group stage.
Team India for 5 ODIs against NZ & ICC Women’s World Cup, 2022: Mithali Raj (Captain), Harmanpreet Kaur (vice-captain), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), Sneh Rana, Jhulan Goswami, Pooja Vastrakar, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh Thakur, Taniya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav.
Standby Players: Sabbhineni Meghana, Ekta Bisht, Simran Dil Bahadur.
| ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 – India’s fixtures | |||
| S.No. | Date | Against | Venue |
| 1 | March 6th | Pakistan | Bay Oval, Tauranga |
| 2 | March 10th | New Zealand | Seddon Park, Hamilton |
| 3 | March 12th | West Indies | Seddon Park, Hamilton |
| 4 | March 16th | England | Bay Oval, Tauranga |
| 5 | March 19th | Australia | Eden Park, Auckland |
| 6 | March 22nd | Bangladesh | Seddon Park, Hamilton |
| 7 | March 27th | South Africa | Hagley Oval, Christchurch |
BCCI Also Announced A 16 Member Squad For A One-Off T20I Against New Zealand
The All-India Women’s Selection Committee also picked the squad for the one-off T20I against New Zealand scheduled to be played on 9th February 2022. BCCI announced a 16-member squad. Harmanpreet Kaur will lead in the lone T20 International against New Zealand to be played on February 9 before the ODIs.
India Women’s squad for one-off T20I: Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), Sneh Rana, Pooja Vastrakar, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh Thakur, Taniya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Ekta Bisht, S. Meghna, Simran Dil Bahadur.
| Team India’s tour of New Zealand (Senior Women) – 2022 | |||
| S.No. | Date | Match | Venue |
| 1 | February 9th | Only T20I | McLean Park, Napier |
| 2 | February 11th | 1st ODI | McLean Park, Napier |
| 3 | February 14th | 2nd ODI | Saxton Oval, Nelson |
| 4 | February 16th | 3rd ODI | Saxton Oval, Nelson |
| 5 | February 22nd | 4th ODI | John Davies Oval, Queenstown |
| 6 | February 24th | 5th ODI | John Davies Oval, Queenstown |