England and India, finalists of the Women’s World Cup 2017, will clash in Match 15th of the 2022 edition. Defending champions England are in terrible form and have lost all three of their matches, even to the lower-ranked teams like West Indies and South Africa. They have to win their remaining four matches to stay in the hunt for the knockout.
India, on the other hand, have won two of their three matches so far. However, some difficult games lie ahead, which makes it important for them to win here and create a two-point gap with other teams like New Zealand, West Indies, and South Africa.
Batting has been a concern for England. Repeated failures of captain Heather Knight and Nat Sciver have pegged them back. Despite fifties from Tammy Beaumont and Amy Jones, their total in the last match was not sufficient for South Africa. They have already replaced Lauren Winfield-Hill with Danni Wyatt at the top of the order. Wyatt has a very good record against India and can be a key player.
Their bowling has looked in better shape, with the experienced Anya Shrubsole and Katherine Brunt as well as the top-ranked bowler in the world, Sophie Ecclestone, all pulling their weights. Sciver is expected to bowl a significant number of overs.
India’s batting will depend on the centurions from the last match, Smriti Mandhana, and Harmanpreet Kaur. Of late, Mithali Raj’s strike rate has been a talking point. She needs to rotate the strike more often for India to benefit from her long stays at the crease. Much will be expected of Yastika Bhatia, Richa Ghosh, and the all-rounders, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana and Pooja Vastrakar.
Jhulan Goswami will lead the pace attack, supported by Meghna Singh and Vastrakar. They have three spinners, in Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Rana and Sharma, but they may still want to play leg spinner Poonam Yadav.
Likely XIs
England: Tammy Beaumont, Danni Wyatt, Heather Knight (c), Nat Sciver, Amy Jones (wk), Sophia Dunkley, Katherine Brunt, Kate Cross, Charlie Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Anya Shrubsole
India: Smriti Mandhana, Yastika Bhatia, Mithali Raj (c), Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Sneh Rana, Pooja Vastrakar, Jhulan Goswami, Meghna Singh, Rajeshwari Gayakwad.
Fantasy Tips
- Pick Mandhana, Kaur, and Beaumont, the in-form batters. Wyatt and Bhatia are also good picks for this match.
- Sciver and Sharma are the two premier all-rounders. However, on current form, Rana is also a good pick.
- Ecclestone and Gayakwad should be popular picks compared to the other bowling options.
Fantasy XI
Amy Jones (wk); Smriti Mandhana (c), Tammy Beaumont, Danni Wyatt, Harmanpreet Kaur; Nat Sciver (vc), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana; Sophie Ecclestone, Kate Cross, Rajeshwari Gayakwad.