Shafali returns to India squad for England tour
Chandigarh: Swashbuckling opening batter Shafali Verma returned to the national team on Thursday with selectors ending her seven-month exile for the upcoming T20I series in England. The five-match series will be followed by three ODIs with in-form Delhi batter Pratika Rawal keeping Shafali out in the 50-over format.
India will take on England in five T20Is set to be played from June 28 to July 12. The three ODIs will be played on July 16, 19 and 22. The T20I series will begin in Nottingham and the tour ends on July 22 in Chester-le-Street.
In Shafali's absence from the limited-over formats, Uma Chetry and Rawal opened alongside Smriti Mandhana in T20Is and ODIs respectively. While Rawal retained her spot, Chetry has been replaced by Shafali who not only had a successful run in domestic cricket but also excelled for Delhi Capitals in the third edition of Women's Premier League (WPL) where her tally of 304 runs at a strike rate of 152.76 helped DC reach the final.
Shafali was dropped from the Indian team last November after a string of poor performances. Later, she slogged hard in the domestic circuit and emerged as the leading run-getter in the Senior Women's One Day Trophy (527 runs, 152.31 strike rate, 75.29 average) and the Senior Women's One Day Challenger Trophy (414 runs, 145.26 strike rate, 82.80 average) while captaining Haryana.
Meanwhile, Rawal grabbed her chance in the ODIs and has since been a consistent performer. With the ODI World Cup due later this year, it looks like Rawal has been identified to open with Mandhana while Verma gets to play the T20 format. The 21-year-old has 1,203 runs from 15 innings across three different domestic competitions at a strike rate of over 150.
India recently beat Sri Lanka in the final of the tri-nation series which also included South Africa. Veteran all-rounder Sneh Rana's Player of the Series performance in the tri-series has earned her a place in both the ODI and T20I squads. Rana makes it to the India T20 team for the first time since the 2023 Women's T20 World Cup.
Fast-bowler Kashvee Gautam lost her place in the ODI team owing to an injury. Seam-bowling all-rounders Kranti Goud and Sayali Satghare and left-arm spinners N Shree Charani and Shuchi Upadhyay have received their maiden T20I call-ups.
India women have not played T20Is since December when they hosted West Indies at home.
India Women T20I squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Sree Charani, Shuchi Upadhyay, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare.
India Women ODI squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Sree Charani, Shuchi Upadhyay, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
23 minutes ago
- News18
BCCI Cuts Allowances, Streamlines Travel Policy; Will Release Pending Allowances
BCCI will release pending daily allowances for staff after revising policy. BCCI The daily allowances for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) staff across departments, pending since January, will be released following the board's senior management streamlining the domestic 'tournament allowance policy'. Under the existing BCCI travel policy, employees receive a per diem of Rs 15,000 for short-term travel (up to four days) and Rs 10,000 for long-term travel, typically for the Indian Premier League (IPL), Women's Premier League (WPL), and ICC events hosted by India. A one-time incidental allowance of Rs 7,500 is also provided during travel. The revised policy removes the incidental allowance. Employees will now receive a flat rate of Rs 10,000 per day while travelling. The IPL window lasts slightly over two months, and ICC events last at least a month. A BCCI source told PTI that after tax deductions at source, the per-day allowance amounts to Rs 6,500. Due to the impending policy revision, BCCI staff, including finance, operations, and media departments, have not received their daily allowances for the IPL and WPL. With the policy now finalised, their dues should be settled soon. 'A clear cut policy was needed in terms of allowances as some employees were claiming allowances even when they were operating out of the Mumbai headquarters during tournaments. Now that it has been devised, the dues will be cleared soon," added the source. For example, an employee travelling for the entire 70-day IPL would receive a daily allowance of Rs 10,000, totalling Rs 7 lakh. Those with limited travel during the IPL can claim only 60 per cent of the 70-day allowance, while those not travelling at all can claim 40 per cent of the amount accrued for 70 days. For foreign travel, most BCCI employees receive USD 300 per day. Honorary office-bearers, including the president, secretary, treasurer, vice-president, and joint secretary, receive a daily allowance of USD 1,000 on foreign tours. They also receive Rs 40,000 for a one-day meeting within India and Rs 30,000 per day for multi-day domestic work trips. First Published:
Hindustan Times
23 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Tendulkar Foundation to develop 50 playgrounds in Maoist-affected Dantewada
Raipur: The Dantewada administration in Chhattisgarh has decided to develop 50 playgrounds under the Maidan Cup initiative in collaboration with the Sachin Tendulkar Foundation and the Mann Deshi Foundation in the Maoist-affected district. So far, 20 playgrounds have been completed through active community participation, and the remaining 30 are expected to be ready by October. 'This project is not just about sports infrastructure — it's about rebuilding lives, empowering youth, and giving Dantewada a new future,' said district collector, Dantewada, Kunal Dudawat. Inspired by the Bastar Olympics 2024, the Maidan Cup was launched to connect children and youth from remote areas to mainstream opportunities through sport, he added. The first phase targets the construction of playgrounds in 50 villages, to be expanded to the entire district in subsequent phases. The playgrounds are being built on the campuses of government high schools, higher secondary schools, and porta-cabin schools using local materials, with each costing under ₹4 lakh. They include facilities for 13 sports items such as running, long jump, javelin throw, shot put, discus, and wall climbing. Local children have also contributed by painting the boundary walls, making the spaces more vibrant and personal. Rather than constructing the facilities unilaterally, the administration brought in community support and iconic names like Sachin Tendulkar to generate enthusiasm among the youth. 'Our goal is to see the next generation of sports stars — like Tendulkar or Neeraj Chopra — emerge from Bastar,' Dudawat added. To further encourage quality development, panchayats creating the best playgrounds under the initiative will be rewarded with a skating park. In addition, work has begun on a residential sports city in Dantewada, which will offer specialised training and advanced facilities including grounds for cricket, football, and hockey, along with swimming pools and athlete housing. 'This is the first time India is witnessing a grassroots movement led by communities to build playgrounds for children,' said Divya Sinha of the Mann Deshi Foundation. 'We want Dantewada and Bastar to be known for climbing walls and skateboards — not conflict.' She noted that around 70% of Indian schools lack proper sports infrastructure, and over 500 million Indians have never played a sport. 'In Dantewada, many children have never had a safe space to run, play, or just be kids. But that's changing now.' So far, playgrounds in villages like Chhindnar, Kasoli, and Heetameta have been completed, directly benefiting around 10,000 children. Under the Foundation's travel coach programme, over 100 government school sports teachers have been trained in Dantewada — part of a broader vision that has already trained 1,700 teachers in Maharashtra. Prabhat Sinha from the Mann Deshi Foundation emphasised the community's active role in the initiative. 'More than 150 villagers — including teachers, farmers, labourers, and children — have come together to build these playgrounds with pride,' he said. Following its success in Dantewada, the Maidan Cup initiative is set to expand to other districts such as Jashpur — the home district of Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai — and Raigarh.
India.com
24 minutes ago
- India.com
It Will Be 3-2 In Favour Of ...: Dale Steyn Backs THIS Team To Emerge As Winner In India vs England Test Series
The Indian cricket team will start a new era in Tests with a five-match series in England, starting June 20, 2025. With Shubman Gill as the new Test captain and Rishabh Pant as vice-captain, India are all set to enter the transition phase after the retirements of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravichandran Ashwin. Ahead of the start of the much-anticipated series between India and England, the former South Africa pacer Dale Steyn has predicted the winner. The former pacer believes all five matches will be close, but in the end, England will come out on top to win the series 3-2. "All games will be close. But all will have a result. I think it will be 3-2 in favour of England. There will be a result in every Test match. There will be no run away win for any team, all five games will be very close," Steyn told JioHotstar. The Shubman Gill-led Indian team is currently playing an intra-squad match against India A in Beckenham. They will play five Test matches at different venues - Headingley, Birmingham, Lord's Cricket Ground, Manchester, and the Oval. Dale Steyn Hails South Africa For WTC Title Win Dale Steyn also praised South Africa for their consistency and resilience after defeated Australia in the final of the World Test Championship at Lord's. "From the start of this World Test Championship cycle, South Africa knew they had to win a certain number of games to make it to the final - and they did that, winning seven in a row, regardless of the opposition. It doesn't matter who you're up against, anyone who's played Test cricket will tell you that winning even a single Test match is never easy. To win seven consecutively, earn a spot in the final, and then go on to get over the line today - that's absolutely huge," Steyn said. "These are two massive teams. They've been fierce rivals for years. Australia commands a lot of respect from every South African cricketer for all that they've achieved, especially their world titles. So South Africa knew this was going to be one of their toughest tests," he added.
