New Delhi, June 12: Former captain of the Indian women’s cricket team, Anjum Chopra, has stated that the team’s batsmen will need to play a crucial role in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. She emphasized that while the bowling department is in the process of strengthening, the batsmen must step up during the tournament.
In a recent interview, Chopra remarked, “In my opinion, this Indian team is led by its batting. There is no room for the batsmen to falter. We are fielding five specialist batsmen, so failure is not an option.”
During the recently concluded T20 series against England, Yastika Bhatia batted at number three, scoring the highest runs in the series with 119. However, her strike rate of 126.79 was the lowest among the top five scorers.
Chopra commented on this, saying, “I understand that the Indian team has limited options for batting at number three. If Jemimah or Harman are batting there, the options for the middle order become scarce. It would have been better if Bharti Fulmali had been given a chance. She was part of the team that went to Australia but did not get to play. She did not capitalize on the opportunities in the South Africa series and seemed uncomfortable in England as well. She also did not perform well in the field. Therefore, I believe that since the middle order was challenging for the Indian team, they wanted to strengthen the top order.”
She added, “Now, when you strengthen the top order, there is no room left for Yastika. I mean, she can bat in the middle order, but she has her own challenges. Keeping that in mind, batting in the top order is better for her. Perhaps that’s why Yastika is batting at number three.”
Regarding Yastika’s slow strike rate, Anjum said, “We must not forget that Yastika does not have much cricketing experience. For the past two years, she has mostly been sidelined. She played a few matches during the Australia A tour, but when she returned to the Indian team, she got injured and missed the Women’s Premier League. She is coming back from a significant injury. Her speed in running and fielding is not there. The team needs to manage this. Losing timing can happen to any batsman. We need to be patient with her, especially since she underwent ACL surgery on her left knee, which kept her out of last year’s ODI World Cup campaign.”
On Bharti, Anjum remarked, “Her initial selection was a surprise for her. She was not able to give her best, which led to changes in the batting order. I don’t think Bharti capitalized on her opportunities. If she had, she would have played in the middle overs in the first and second T20 matches. Bharti did not seem reliable.”
Discussing the promotion of Deepti Sharma over Richa Ghosh in Taunton and the possibility of repeating this in the World Cup, Anjum stated, “I think it was just to give Deepti time as a batsman before Richa. Speaking of Richa, I believe there will be flexibility in her batting order. I am not a big fan of flexibility in the batting order because I think every batsman should know where they are playing and what they are doing. Richa can be sent up when needed.”
On the Indian bowling attack, the former captain said, “Bowlers will need to work hard to find ways to take wickets from the opposing side. Fielding will also play a crucial role. It is vital for every game, regardless of whether you are playing against the number one or the tenth ranked team.”
Anjum emphasized that batting, bowling, and fielding are all extremely important. No department should be taken lightly.
The Indian women’s team will face Pakistan in their first match of the T20 World Cup 2026 this Sunday. Regarding this match, the former Indian captain said, “The playing eleven will be chosen based on the pitch. If the pitch in Birmingham is conducive to spin against Pakistan, then there will be an additional spinner in the team. If the pitch favors batting, then there won’t be an extra spinner. Three fast bowlers could be in the playing eleven.”
Leave a Comment