India have won 18 out of 27 matches since 2024.
India Women may have suffered a series defeat against their biggest rivals Australia ahead of the Women’s World Cup 2025, but they head into the tournament as one of the favourites. The seven-time champions will be the top contenders to lift the trophy, with the Women in Blue as the challengers.
The three-match ODI series ended with a 2-1 scoreline to Australia, who clinched the decider by 43 runs. Indian bowlers weren’t up to the mark as the visitors piled on 412 – the joint sixth highest total in women’s ODIs.
Chasing that mammoth target, Smriti Mandhana produced one of the most outrageous knocks. She struck 125 off just 63 deliveries, keeping India well in front with over 200 on the board in 20 overs. Despite Mandhana recording the fastest ever ODI century for India, they eventually lost. However, the series showcased their potential.
It looked like the Women in Blue were on course to create history when Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur were going strong. But then they lost a few wickets and were reduced to 289 for 7. Deepti Sharma (72 off 58) and Sneh Rana (35 off 41) fought well to get the team closer.
Mandhana takes plenty of positives from the series, as she believes Australia are the benchmark by which to test themselves ahead of this mega event. There have been concerns over India’s batting line-up being too reliant on Mandhana, but she doesn’t agree with it.
“Everyone is a match-winner. I have a huge belief in the whole team, that from any point we can still win the match. That is never going to change with one or two results. If you see in the last 12-odd months we’ve got 300 or 300-plus even when I’ve got out so that doesn’t really say anything about the batting reliance on anyone. Pratika [Rawal], Harleen [Deol], Jemimah [Rodrigues], Harman, everyone’s got a hundred in the last 12 months,” said Mandhana in the post-match press conference.
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Australia Women are clear favourites to win this World Cup as they are ahead in every other tournament. However, if there is any team that can challenge this monstrous Australian side, it is India. Playing at home also gives the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side an advantage.
While Australia are the best side in the world, India have surpassed other top sides to cement themselves as the second-best team. Since the start of 2024, they have a win-loss ratio of 2.00. Barring the Aussies, India have defeated all other teams in bilateral assignments in this period. That includes series victories over England, South Africa, and New Zealand.
India have also built a formidable batting unit with the likes of Mandhana, Pratika Rawal, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur, Richa Ghosh, and Deepti Sharma. Three of these batters average over 50 with the bat since last year, while three have a strike rate of over 100.
| Player | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smriti Mandhana | 27 | 1675 | 62.03 | 105.61 |
| Jemimah Rodrigues | 23 | 808 | 38.47 | 100.49 |
| Pratika Rawal | 17 | 802 | 50.12 | 84.95 |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | 22 | 742 | 39.05 | 99.46 |
| Harleen Deol | 20 | 674 | 35.47 | 79.85 |
| Deepti Sharma | 20 | 567 | 51.54 | 92.04 |
| Richa Ghosh | 23 | 482 | 28.35 | 113.94 |
It is a significant change compared to the previous years, where their batting was heavily reliant on Mandhana and Kaur. The veteran duo remains key to India’s chances, but now the team has other players who can deliver even if those two fail.
Putting on big scores is another aspect India Women have gotten significantly better at. Since the start of 2024, they have scored 300 or more runs in nine out of 27 games. Four of those were 350+ scores.
Team India is not without issues. They have plenty of work to do on their ground fielding and catching. They also have to tighten their bowling. Despite that, they have what it takes to beat the world champions.
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