Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Deepti Sharma have been selected captains of the three teams competing in the Women's T20 Challenge, which begins on May 23 in Pune. Each of the three teams — Mandhana's Trailblazers, Harmanpreet's Supernovas, and Deepti's Velocity — will have 16 players.
The previous edition, held in 2020, was won by the Trailblazers. Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, and Shikha Pandey, all of whom featured in the previous edition, are conspicuous omissions from the lineups.
The exhibition event will include a total of 12 international players, including renowned South African opener Laura Wolvaardt and world number one bowler Sophie Ecclestone. Thai player Natthakan Chantam will compete for the second time.
Alana King is the only Australian in the squad, with Ecclestone, Sophia Dunkley, and Kate Cross representing England. Sharmin Akhter and Salma Khatun, both Bangladeshi cricketers, have also been selected. Hayley Matthews and Deandra Dottin are among the West Indians.
Wolvaardt and Sune Luus, both from South Africa, will represent Velocity and Supernovas, respectively. The winners of the Senior Women's T20 Trophy, which took place recently, have also been recognised. Velocity will field the tournament's leading run scorer K P Navgire and leading wickettaker Aarti Kedar.
The current edition is believed to be the final one, since the BCCI plans to launch a full-fledged Women's IPL next year.
