Women's T20 World Cup: A couple of days ahead of their first T20 World Cup match against Pakistan, the Indian cricket team faces injury concerns in their squad. Team captain Harmanpreet Kaur and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana are facing injury threats and can reportedly be ruled out of India vs Pakistan World Cup match on February 12.
According to a report from the news agency PTI, Mandhana is likely to miss the T20 World Cup opener on February 12. "She suffered an injury in the practice game. We can't say she is out of World Cup yet. But she could miss the Pakistan game," an ICC source told PTI.
Mandhana and Harmanpreet in action
Harmanpreet's availability also under clouds
Notably, there can be more setbacks for the Women in Blue as their captain Harmanpreet Kaur's fitness is also a concern for the World Cup opener. However, there is no official word from BCCI on the availability of both players.
Mandhana suffered a finger injury during India's World Cup warm-up game against Australia and missed the second match against Bangladesh. Meanwhile, Kaur faced a shoulder injury during the final of the Tri-Series against South Africa last week. The Indian skipper had said after the match, "Body is fine. It will get better with rest."
The Indian Women's Cricket team will be eyeing a maiden World Cup title as the T20 World Cup gets underway. The first match of the tournament will be played between Sri Lanka and South Africa on February 10. The second match will be played between West Indies and England on February 11, followed by India's blockbuster match against Pakistan on February 12. India are placed in Group B of the tournament, alongside, Pakistan, England, Ireland and West Indies.
India's squad for World Cup:
Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Yastika Bhatia, Harleen Deol, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Richa Ghosh, Shikha Pandey, Jemimah Rodrigues, Anjali Sarvani, Deepti Sharma, Renuka Singh, Devika Vaidya, Pooja Vastrakar, Shafali Verma, Radha Yadav
