Just over a month after Harmanpreet Kaur led her side to glory in the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025, attention now turns to the shortest format of the game, with all efforts tuned towards next year’s marquee T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in England and Wales in June-July.

When the originally scheduled white-ball series against Bangladesh in this window fell through, the BCCI, along with Sri Lanka Cricket, swiftly moved to set up a bilateral meeting between the neighbours as per the Future Tours Programme provisions for this cycle. The build-up was crucial for both sides, albeit they find themselves in different predicaments.

The Women in Blue boast a strong record against the island nation, having won 20 of their 26 encounters so far. While the overall numbers do not favour the visitor, Sri Lanka can draw some encouragement from the fact that the series begins at the same venue where it last defeated India, back in 2014. There is also that epochal Asia Cup final triumph against India in 2024 to look back on should the side find itself searching for motivation.

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The five-match T20I series gets underway in Visakhapatnam on December 21 and 23, before moving to Thiruvananthapuram for the remaining fixtures on December 26, 28, and 30.

Drawing board

The road to the latest edition of the biannual tournament for India, after the tussle with Sri Lanka, includes two three-match series against its two biggest title rivals, Australia in February and New Zealand in May-June.

A little over a year ago, India exited the T20 World Cup, held in the UAE, in the group stage following a stunning loss to New Zealand in its opening fixture, setting the tone for an ordinary campaign. The thrashing at the hands of Australia definitively hit the nail in India’s coffin.

Two series triumphs since in the format may have bandaged some of the wounds, if anyone remembers them at all, after the confetti and congratulations of an ODI World Cup triumph that followed. A 2-1 victory against West Indies at home and a close 3-2 win against England in its backyard gave India ample time to experiment and blood new talent in the past few months, with the primary focus firmly on the 50-over showpiece.

Several creases emerged that Amol Muzumdar and Co. can work towards ironing out. A familiar capitulation under pressure witnessed during that World Cup would hopefully have been put to bed, given the spunk on show during India’s recent ODI world conquest.

Batting collapses and strike rate issues plagued India in the UAE, but the side has since unlocked another gear in its white-ball batting engine. Not having to deal with the slow, low UAE tracks will offer another breather, with surfaces in India overwhelmingly favouring the willow.

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This might even take some sting out of India’s dismal run with the toss, having lost all nine of its last flips of the coin.

Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup sojourn was far more dreadful. The side returned without a win and has played only one series since, a 1-1 draw against New Zealand away, where the final fixture in Dunedin was washed out.

As much as Sri Lanka attempts to move away from dependence on Chamari Athapaththu, when the going gets hard, it invariably turns back to her for salvation. The New Zealand series, where the skipper finished as Player of the Tournament, exemplified this. It was also the story of the T20 World Cup in 2024 and the ODI World Cup of 2025. The template for preview writers remains unchanged: how much can Athapaththu do alone?

Towards that end, the Lankans are fielding a new-look outfit for their India tour. The likes of Anushka Sanjeewani, Udeshika Prabodhani, Achini Kulasuriya, and Sugandika Kumar have all made way for fresh names eager to make a mark on the international stage.

Among them are 17-year-old ambidextrous spinner Shashini Gimhani, who returns to the national team for the first time since August 2024, and left-arm spinner Nimesha Madushani, who has received her maiden call-up. Kaushini Nuthyangana may take over Anushka’s place behind the stumps.

In the ODI World Cup, players like Harshitha Samarawickrama and Vishmi Gunaratne were tested aplenty, stepping up to the pressure eventually but just not enough to seal victories. The Lankans will hope that the good work and promise these very youngsters carved with that Asia Cup triumph finds a way to believe in itself against a formidable opponent and in an important year.

Power of stability

India’s ODI World Cup-winning squad largely features in this series. Pratika Rawal, who was never part of the T20 scheme of things to begin with, is missing, while the other two names, leg-spinner Radha Yadav and back-up keeper Uma Chetry, have made way for two fresh faces in left-arm spinner Vaishnavi Sharma and keeper-batter G. Kamalini.

Vaishnavi was the leading wicket-taker with 17 wickets at this year’s Under-19 Women’s World Cup. The 19-year-old has also been in good touch on the domestic circuit, picking up 21 wickets in the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy and 12 scalps from five matches, the most, in the Senior Women’s Inter-Zonal T20s.

Kamalini, who also impressed at the Under-19 Women’s World Cup as the third-highest run-scorer with 143 runs, finds a place in the squad as the backup wicketkeeper to Richa Ghosh. The Tamil Nadu and Mumbai Indians player comes into the tournament on the back of a strong run in the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy, where she scored 297 runs in seven matches. This effectively shuts the door on Uma, who also went without takers in the Women’s Premier League auction.

Muzumdar’s penchant for experimentation is not lost on anyone, and India has three solid opportunities, along with the fertile ground of the WPL, to fine-tune its eleven ahead of the showpiece in England.

Published on Dec 20, 2025