ICC Women’s WC opener in Guwahati: India faces Sri Lanka; Garg tribute planned

Guwahati, Sept 30: For the first time, Guwahati is hosting five matches of the ICC Women’s World Cup, and the excitement at Barsapara Stadium is palpable on Tuesday as city readies for the opening match of the coveted tournament.

Though the gates are set to open at 3 pm for the inauguration ceremony of the 2025 ICC Women’s World Cup, with the Indian women’s team facing Sri Lanka, eager fans, students, and cricket enthusiasts have been flocking to the stadium since early morning.

The inauguration programme, slated for 40 minutes, will feature a special tribute to cultural icon Zubeen Garg before the match begins. Acclaimed musicians Joi Barua, Angaraag ‘Papon’ Mahanta, and Shreya Ghosal are scheduled to perform three of Garg’s beloved hits.

Papon is set to croon Garg’s classic “Maya”, while Ghosal has been practising “Mayabini”, which has become a symbolic anthem in Assam following Garg’s untimely passing.

Despite the opening match coinciding with Durga Puja’s Mahaashtami, fans have turned up in large numbers, many adorning themselves with Indian tricolour face paint outside the stadium, adding to the festive and patriotic atmosphere.

With home advantage and current form on its side, the Indian women’s cricket team will look to end a 47-year wait for its maiden ICC title this year.

Ranked world No.3, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led India will look to make the most of their familiarity with conditions in the 13th edition of the tournament that is returning to India after 12 years.

The global showpiece will feature eight top ranked teams – Australia, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan – competing in 28 league matches in a round-robin format across four venues in India and one in Colombo for a record prize money of USD 13.88 million.

The prize pool is also nearly four times higher than 2022 and surpasses the men’s 2023 edition (USD 10 million) to be in line with the ICC’s push for pay parity and growth of women’s cricket.

The Sri Lankan capital will host 11 round-robin matches, including Pakistan’s seven league stage games and the marquee clash against India on October 5.

One semifinal and the final are also scheduled there, should Pakistan go all the way.

Form factor

On current form, India arrive with confidence, having recently beaten England in both ODI and T20I series.

They also ended a worrying losing streak against Australia in a recent tournament build-up series. The Indians nearly chased down 413 in the final ODI in New Delhi against the team which is chasing a record-extending eighth title.

Indian vice-captain Smriti Mandhana remains the fulcrum of the batting unit, enjoying the form of her life at the top of order.

The left-hander has already struck four ODI centuries, including two back-to-back against Australia, this year. She averages 66.28 with a strike rate of 115.85.

Her partnerships with young opener Pratika Rawal, who has provided solidity at the top, give India the cushion to post or chase big totals in the absence of an out of favour Shafali Varma.

Playing her fifth World Cup, Harmanpreet, who reserves her best for big tournaments, carries a tournament average of over 50. She smashed a century against England recently and followed it up with a fifty against Australia.

Jemimah Rodrigues, back from injury, scored a composed 66 in the warm-up against England and adds stability in the middle order.

Richa Ghosh, Harleen Deol and Deepti Sharma add further depth, while Amanjot Kaur offers a seam-bowling all-round option.

Return of Renuka Singh from an injury would bolster the pace attack as she would spearhead the bowling on flatbeds across the venues.

Twenty-two-year old Kranti Goud, with only six caps to her name, has shown promise with her pace and variations including a searing yorker.

During her country’s tour of England this summer, she joined Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav as the only players to ever take six wickets for India in ODIs in the country, with 6/52 at Chester-le-Street.

However, India’s pace department remains thin on experience.

Renuka aside, the other pacers – Kranti, Arundhati Reddy and Amanjot – have played just 25 ODIs between them and the bowling has conceded 300-plus scores in recent past.

Injuries are also a concern with Reddy having left the field on a wheelchair after being struck in a warm-up game, while Amanjot also had an injury scare before she made a return in the last warm-up against New Zealand.

The spin lineup led by Deepti Sharma, Radha Yadav, Sneh Rana and N Sree Charani, is tailor-made for home conditions but it remains to be seen how much turn would be on offer in the flat decks.

India’s biggest challenge could be mental, as history shows a tendency to falter in crunch situations.

With inputs from PTI