India defeated West Indies in the warm up matchImage Credit source: Getty Images
Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 is about to start in England but just before that, Team India does not seem to be in full swing yet. The situation seen in the recent T20 series against England remained the same for many players in the tournament practice matches as well. The Indian team won the match against West Indies but a star wicketkeeper-batsman Richa Ghosh again failed. Now, even after coming so close to the World Cup, his inability to bat has become a problem.
This World Cup is to start from Friday, June 12, while Team India’s first match is against Pakistan on June 14. In such a situation, the Indian team does not have much time and all the players are expected to achieve rhythm in whatever matches they are getting for preparation. But it has not been completely successful and this was visible in the warm-up match against West Indies.
In this match, the Indian team batted first and scored 179 runs losing 8 wickets. The good thing was that the opening pair of Smriti Mandhana and Shefali Verma were back in form, making a partnership of 59 runs in 5.2 overs. Whereas Yastika Bhatia and Bharti Phoolmali made strong contributions in the middle order. But the cause of trouble is wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh, who is expected to hit big shots and score runs quickly.
In this innings, Richa came to bat in the 16th over but was out without opening the account on the very first ball. This was the fourth consecutive match in which the young wicketkeeper could not do anything amazing. Earlier in the T20 series against England, his scores were 4, 8 and 6 (not out). In such a situation, the silence of the bat of the team’s finisher is making it difficult and if this situation continues in the World Cup, then the dream of winning the title may remain unfulfilled.
Talking about the match, the bowlers definitely performed well and stopped West Indies before reaching the target. Especially the spin attack proved to be absolutely accurate. Off-spinner Shreyanka Patil and left-arm spinner Radha Yadav together controlled the West Indies batsmen and restricted them to 153 runs. Shreyanka took 4 wickets for 36 runs and Radha took 3 wickets for 25 runs. The Indian team won this match by 26 runs. The team’s next and last practice match is against host England on June 10.
