India Women's Squad Shock: New Captain, Fresh Faces for Zimbabwe Clash

Dr. Annelies De Vos · 2026-10-07

The BCCI just dropped India's women's squads for the Zimbabwe series, and trust me, there's a lot to unpack. Smriti Mandhana is stepping into her first full-time captaincy role, and she's bringing some fresh faces along for the ride. Niki Prasad and Jintimani Kalita are the new kids on the T20I block, while Nandani Sharma gets her first ODI call-up. Meanwhile, Harmanpreet Kaur, who just stepped down as captain across formats, is still very much in the mix. ### Series Schedule: T20Is in Raipur, ODIs in Vadodara Mark your calendars: the T20Is kick off on October 16 in Raipur, with matches on October 18 and 20. Then the action shifts to Vadodara for the ODIs on October 23, 25, and 28. It's a quickfire series, so you won't want to miss a ball. ### T20I Squad: Prasad and Kalita Get the Nod Niki Prasad is one to watch. She captained India to the Under-19 World Cup title in Malaysia earlier this year and has been piling on the runs and wickets for India A. In the recent series against Australia A, she scored an unbeaten 54 in a T20, made 76 off 71 balls in an ODI, and even took seven wickets in a four-day game. That's some serious all-round talent. Jintimani Kalita's inclusion raised a few eyebrows, though. She didn't have the most productive A tour of England, and her returns against Australia A were modest. But the selectors see something in her, so let's see how she fares. Four players from the Asian Games gold-winning T20I squad miss out: Bharti Fulmali, Shreyanka Patil, Renuka Singh, and Radha Yadav. In come Minnu Mani and Anushka Sharma alongside Prasad and Kalita. Shafali Verma will be Mandhana's deputy in T20Is. ### ODI Squad: Nandani Sharma Earns Maiden Call-Up The ODI squad sees even more shuffling. G Kamalini, Jemimah Rodrigues, Amanjot Kaur, Sneh Rana, and Kashvee Gautam, who were part of the Australia tour earlier this year, are all absent. Rodrigues is still recovering from a high-grade hamstring tear she suffered in the Hundred, which also kept her out of the Asian Games. Nandani Sharma finally gets her ODI chance after impressing in T20Is and domestic cricket. She was part of the Asian Games gold-winning side and the T20 Asia Cup triumph in Dubai. The 21-year-old fast bowler has been on the radar for a while, and this is her moment to shine. Deepti Sharma will be the vice-captain for the ODIs, adding her experience to the leadership group. ### Full Squads **T20I Squad:** Smriti Mandhana (capt), Shafali Verma (vice-capt), Niki Prasad, Harmanpreet Kaur, Anushka Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), G Kamalini (wk), Deepti Sharma, Prema Rawat, N Shree Charani, Nandani Sharma, Kranti Gaud, Arundhati Reddy, Jintimani Kalita, Minnu Mani. **ODI Squad:** Smriti Mandhana (capt), Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Harmanpreet Kaur, Harleen Deol, Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma (vice-capt), Richa Ghosh (wk), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Vaishnavi Sharma, Nandani Sharma, N Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare, Renuka Singh. ### What This Means for India's Future This series is a golden opportunity for the newcomers to prove themselves. With Mandhana at the helm, India is looking to build a squad for the next big tournaments. The Zimbabwe series might seem low-stakes, but for players like Prasad and Nandani, it's a chance to cement their places. And for the team, it's about finding the right combinations. Keep an eye on how Mandhana handles the captaincy pressure. She's been a star batter for years, but leading the side full-time is a different beast. If she can get the best out of this mix of youth and experience, India could be onto something special.