World T20 preview: India

India squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Mithali Raj, Jemimah Rodrigues, Veda Krishnamurthy, Deepti Sharma, Tanya Bhatia, Poonam Yadav, Radha Yadav, Anuja Patil, Ekta Bisht, Hemlata, Mansi Joshi, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy

Fixtures: 9 November v New Zealand, 11 November v Pakistan, 15 November v Ireland, 17 November v Australia

Best result: Semi-finals (2009, 2010)

ICC ranking: 5th

The talking point: There’s one glaring absentee from India’s squad: veteran fast bowler Jhulan Goswami. The 35-year-old announced her retirement from T20 Internationals in August and her 12 years of experience will be missed by an Indian team desperate to claim their first piece of ICC silverware after losing last year’s 50-over World Cup final to England. Star allrounder Harmanpreet Kaur will lead India into the tournament, while her group also boasts in-form veteran Mithali Raj and rising batter Smriti Mandhana.

The star: Skipper Harmanpreet produced the performance of her life in last year’s 50-over World Cup semi-final, flaying the Australian bowling attack in a match-winning century. The allrounder was in ominous form during a recent T20I series on home soil against Australia A, posting scores of 45, 57 and 41 and she’ll be expected to lead from the front as India look to snag a semi-final berth for the first time since 2010.

The one to watch: Smriti Mandhana is the key for India at the top of the order and has been in career-best form in 2018. She’s only 22 years old, but will be appearing in her third World T20 tournament and her ability to score quickly could make-or-break India’s campaign. Four of her five T20 half-centuries have come in 2018 – and three of those against Australia and England – and she’ll form a potent top-order alongside veteran Mithali Raj and newcomer Jemimah Rodrigues.

The verdict: India are in a tough group alongside world No.1 Australia and No.2 New Zealand and they’ll need to beat at least one of those sides, if not both, to advance. But this India team is one that is full of confidence after last year’s effort at the 50-over World Cup and they’ll be fancying their chances with a batting line-up possessing the likes of Harmanpreet, Mandhana, Rodrigues and Raj alongside the pace of exciting new quick Pooja Vastrakar – who can also give the ball a good whack – and the spin of Deepti Sharma, Poonam Yadav and Ekta Bisht. They’ve been stronger in the ODI format of late, but will be eager to make up for the disappointment of missing the finals at their home tournament in 2016.

2018 ICC Women's World T20  

Australia squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Nicole Bolton, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy (wk), Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Elyse Villani, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham

November 9: Australia v Pakistan, Province Stadium, Guyana

November 11: Australia v Ireland, Province Stadium

November 13: Australia v New Zealand, Province Stadium

November 17: Australia v India, Province Stadium

November 22: Semi-finals, Sir Vivian Richards Ground, Antigua

November 24: Final, Sir Vivian Richards Ground