India Women's Zimbabwe Squads: New Captain, Fresh Faces, Bold Moves

Dr. Annelies De Vos · 2026-10-07

### Smriti Mandhana Takes the Reins as India Women's Captain You know that feeling when everything changes at once? That's exactly what's happening with India's women's cricket team right now. The BCCI just dropped the squads for the upcoming home series against Zimbabwe, and let me tell you, there's a lot to unpack here. Smriti Mandhana is stepping into her first full-time captaincy role for the white-ball sides. Harmanpreet Kaur, who's been the face of Indian women's cricket for years, stepped down from captaincy across all formats on the same day. But here's the thing, she's still in both squads. That's experience you don't just throw away, right? ### The Schedule: Three T20Is and Three ODIs If you're planning to follow along, here's what the calendar looks like: - **T20Is in Raipur:** October 16, 18, and 20 - **ODIs in Vadodara:** October 23, 25, and 28 Six matches in about two weeks. That's a pretty packed schedule, and it'll be interesting to see how the new leadership handles the pressure. ### New Faces in the T20I Squad Niki Prasad is the name everyone's talking about. She captained India to the Under-19 World Cup title in Malaysia back in 2025, and now she's on the verge of her senior debut. Her recent performances for India A against Australia A were solid. An unbeaten 54 in the second T20, 76 off 71 balls in the third one-dayer, plus four wickets. And in the four-day match? She scored 91 in the first innings and took seven wickets for 77 runs across the game, including a five-wicket haul. That's the kind of all-round performance that gets you noticed. Jintimani Kalita's inclusion, though, came as a bit of a surprise. She didn't pick up many wickets on the A tour of England in June-July, and her games against Australia A at home brought similar returns. Sometimes selectors see something we don't, I guess. Four players from the Asian Games gold medal-winning T20I squad have dropped out: Bharti Fulmali, Shreyanka Patil, Renuka Singh, and Radha Yadav. Minnu Mani and Anushka Sharma come in alongside Prasad and Kalita. Shafali Verma has been named vice-captain for the T20Is. ### ODI Squad: More Changes, New Opportunities The ODI squad looks quite different from the last time India played this format back in February-March against Australia. G Kamalini, Jemimah Rodrigues, Amanjot Kaur, Sneh Rana, and Kashvee Gautam were all part of that line-up. None of them are here now. Rodrigues, in particular, has been out with a high-grade right hamstring tear she suffered while playing for Southern Brave in the women's Hundred earlier this year. That injury also kept her out of India's Asian Games campaign. Tough break for sure. Tejal Hasabnis, Yastika Bhatia, Vaishnavi Sharma, Nandani Sharma, and Sayali Satghare are the five new inclusions. Nandani already has T20I caps and was part of the Asian Games gold-winning side. She's been one of the most promising fast-bowling prospects in the country lately, and her performances at the women's T20 Asia Cup in Dubai and the Asian Games have been impressive. Deepti Sharma will serve as vice-captain in the ODIs. ### What This Means Going Forward This series feels like a turning point. New captain, new faces, and a mix of experienced players who've been through the grind. It's a chance for players like Prasad and Nandani to prove they belong at this level. And for Mandhana, it's her first real test as the full-time leader. How she handles the pressure, the selections, and the expectations will tell us a lot about what's ahead for this team. One thing's for sure: Zimbabwe isn't going to roll over. Every series matters, especially when you're building something new. So keep an eye on these matches. You might just witness the start of something special.