After being left out of the squad for the South Africa series, Shafali Verma could finally be handed her ODI debut.
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England and India will be seen battling it out in the white-ball leg of the tour, following an exciting draw in the one-off Test in Bristol. The white-ball leg will start with a three-match ODI series. The first game of the 50-over format will take place at the Bristol County Ground in Bristol tomorrow with 11:00 AM being the local time. India will look to make amends for a poor performance in their ODI series against South Africa from earlier this year.
Shafali Verma who could finally be handed her ODI debut, will certainly play a vital role in this regard. The young opener will be eager to showcase her capabilities having been left out of the squad for the South Africa series. Shafali delivered a fine performance on her Test debut against England. She scored a fifty in each innings (96 and 63), and will be eager to carry her form into the white-ball leg.
“Thanks to our team for supporting me in my journey,” the youngster said, after scoring 159 runs in the match.
“I was just thinking to play to my strengths, and with confidence. I just want to be a good cricketer for my side, that’s it,” added Shafali.
Sneh Rana could further be one of the players making ODI debuts, following her fantastic all-round exploits in the recently concluded Test. Sneh’s performances helped the visitors salvage a draw from a difficult situation.
“I’m feeling really great that I’m able to contribute something for my team,” she said after the match.
“It’s an emotional moment for me, being picked by an India team after five long years. That’s an emotional and really proud moment for me. From here, I’m taking so much confidence,” added Sneh.
England will be led by Heather Knight. The hosts will be high on confidence having defeated New Zealand 2-1 earlier this year in February. Sophia Dunkley is likely to earn her maiden ODI cap on Sunday, having recorded a half-century on debut.
The visitors emerged victorious in home conditions the last time these sides clashed in ODIs, registering a 2-1 series win. Smriti Mandhana finished as the leading run-scorer (153 runs), after accumulating two half-centuries. Shikha Pandey and Jhulan Goswami were the pick of the bowlers. Both the players accounted for eight scalps each in the three ODIs.
India squad for ODI series: Mithali Raj (captain), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Punam Raut, Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Taniya Bhatia (wicketkeeper), Sneh Rana, Jhulan Goswami, Shikha Pandey, Jemimah Rodrigues, Arundhati Reddy, Puja Vastrakar, Ekta Bisht, Radha Yadav, Poonam Yadav, Priya Punia, Indrani Roy.
England squad for ODI series: Heather Knight (captain), Tammy Beaumont, Kate Cross, Nat Sciver, Sophia Dunkley, Lauren Winfield-Hill, Anya Shrubsole, Katherine Brunt, Sophie Ecclestone, Amy Jones (wicketkeeper), Freya Davis, Tash Farrant, Sarah Glenn, Mady Villiers, Fran Wilson, Sarah Glenn, Emily Arlott, Tash Farrant.
It will be interesting to see if Shafali is able to maintain the same consistency and impact in the ODI format, having impressed on her debut in Test cricket.
