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While the Men in Blue are locking horns against England in a five-match series for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, the Women in Blue are all set to kickstart their tour of England. Notably, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led India Women are set to play against England Women in a limited-overs series, consisting of five T20Is and three ODIs. They series will commence on Saturday, June 28 with the first T20I set to be played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.
But ahead of the series opener, the Women in Blue have dealt with massive setback. On the eve of the first Test, India Women captain Harmanpreet Kaur missed the pre-match press conference and was replaced by her deputy Smriti Mandhana. While her absence raised several eyebrows, with many speculating of her missing the first T20I, Smirit Mandhana finally broke silence on the same.
I don’t think she’s not playing: Smriti Mandhana breaks silence on Harmanpreet Kaur’s absence ahead of first T20I
Seeing this, Mandhana was inquired of Harmanpreet Kaur’s absence from the pre-match presser on Friday to which she responded, “I don’t think she’s not playing; she’s just unwell today. I am here just filling up (for Harmanpreet) today.” The statement from Mandhana gave assurance to many of Harmanpreet’s participation in series opener in Nottingham. It is to be noted that this will be Harmanpreet Kaur’s first T20I match in 2025 after she scored 394 runs in 15 T20Is last year.
Furthermore, Team India’s deputy, Smriti Mandhana also expressed confidence in the team’s preparation, where the players underwent a 25-day camp in Bengaluru. “It’s been a good 25 days of prep. We had batters and bowlers’ camp at NCA, and that was also very targeted and very specific, keeping in mind this tour and the World Cup," Mandhana said.
India Women’s T20I squad for England T20Is
Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (WK), Yastika Bhatia (WK), Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Sree Charani, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare, Radha Yadav
