While the England women's team alternates between Tests, the India women's team will sport the white jersey for the first time in nearly seven years on Wednesday (June 16), when the two teams square off in a one-off Test at the Bristol County Ground.
The last time India's women's team played a Test match was in November 2014, when Mithali Raj led the team to an innings and 34-run victory over South Africa.
Even though there is no visible momentum, Team India would like to get off to a good start. England has played three Tests against Australia in the last seven years. However, India's Test vice-captain Harmanpreet Kaur believes the team is "mentally" prepared despite the lack of game time.
"We may not have much practice under our belt going into the Test, but mentally we are prepared. We've discussed a lot of things so we prepare ourselves well for the match," Harmanpreet said in a virtual press conference.
"Even in the nets, we've tried to be in a good frame of mind because when you are happy, other than thinking too much about your batting, you tend to play well," she added.
Even England vice-captain Nat Sciver didn't shy away from praising Team India. Sciver, interestingly, was a member of India's lone Test against England in 2014.
Back then, India had defeated England by six wickets. Sciver stated that the Indian women's cricket team appears to be more fearless than in the past. However, England will start as favourites because they have played more Tests than India.
Furthermore, eleven players from England's full squad have played a Test before, whereas only eight from India have played a Test before. But, like Mithali, the women's squad is known for writing history, and you never know what this week in England has in store for the team.
