In a Women’s Asia Cup Group A match played here on Tuesday, India’s acting captain Smriti Mandhana chose to bat first after winning the toss against Nepal. Harmanpreet Kaur, India’s regular captain, and pacer Pooja Vastrakar have been rested for the match. Arundhati Reddy and S. Sajana replace the duo in India’s playing 11.
“We’d like to bat first today. In the last few years, T20 cricket has changed. It’s a collective effort, we’ve looked to take on whatever is in our range. The outfields are quick, the tracks are flat, and sometimes even 200 isn’t enough. We’ll look to trust our process and look to bat. 180 will be great, it’s about playing one ball at a time. Harman and Pooja are resting,” Mandhana said at the toss.
On the other hand, Nepal captain Indu Barma confirmed two changes in her team.
“We are ready for both. We have some youngsters who are keen to get into the contest. We are ready for every challenge; we look to give our 100%. We have two changes,” she said.
Playing XIs:
India Women: Shefali Verma, Smriti Mandhana(c), Dayalan Hemalatha, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh(w), Deepti Sharma, S Sajana, Radha Yadav, Tanuja Kanwar, Renuka Thakur Singh, Arundhati Reddy.
Nepal Women: Samjhana Khadka, Sita Rana Magar, Kabita Kunwar, Indu Barma (c), Dolly Bhatta, Rubina Chhetry, Puja Mahato, Kabita Joshi, Kajal Shrestha(w), Sabnam Rai, Bindu Rawal.