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Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 clock ticks as Smriti Mandhana’s struggles in IND vs SL series continues

Women's T20 World Cup 2026 clock ticks as Smriti Mandhana's struggles in IND vs SL series continues

Image Credit: SPP Sport Press Photo /Alamy Live News
India Women will play just 8 more T20Is before the 2026 Women's T20 World Cup.

The India women’s cricket team has sealed the series against Sri Lanka, 3-0, in Thiruvananthapuram. In what was a dominating display, the Women in Blue dismissed the visitors for 112 and chased the target down in just 13.2 overs with 8 wickets to spare.

But the focus was never on winning the 5-match series. With just 8 T20Is left before the 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup, Team India would like to tick off a few boxes. Achieving certain goals is more important than victories and defeats at the moment.

Bowling going well

Let’s start with the positives first. In the India vs Sri Lanka 3rd T20I, we saw the bowling shine once again. Deepti Sharma claimed a 3-fer and became the joint-highest wicket-taker in Women’s T20I cricket.

Apart from Deepti, Renuka Singh Thakur took 4 wickets. The pacer didn’t feature in the first two games. She came in with a bang, taking wickets in each phase of the game. Sree Charani was the only disappointment, but she took 3 wickets in the first two T20Is.

Shafali Varma firing, Smriti Mandhana failing

Batting has more positives and negatives. Shafali Varma has now scored back-to-back unbeaten fifties. As one of the most destructive batters in the game, India would love for her to continue on this path. Jemimah Rodrigues struggled in Thiruvananthapuram but played great knocks in Visakhapatnam.

Captain Harmanpreet Kaur and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana have been struggling. The former has scored just 46 runs in 46 balls in the 3 matches, while the latter has just 40 runs from 42 balls in the series. While Harmanpreet often blows hot and cold in bilateral series, Madhana’s form is an issue. Maybe personal issues are bleeding in, and that’s why she hasn’t hit her stride.

Harmanpreet’s batting wasn’t amazing, but just like Deepti, she created an all-time record. The 3-0 over Sri Lanka means that she now has the most wins as captain in Women’s T20Is.

Most wins as a captain in Women’s T20Is

  • 77 – Harmanpreet Kaur (130 matches)
  • 76 – Meg Lanning (100 matches)
  • 72 – Heather Knight (96 matches)
  • 68 – Charlotte Edwards (93 matches)
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