Come March 23, the international women cricketers will compete against each other to claim the ICC Women's World T20. The event will be held alongside the men's World T20, which will also be held in Bangladesh. The semifinals and the final will be played on the same day and venue -- in Mirpur -- as the men's and is scheduled before the men's matches.
The teams have been announced, the stage is set, the women are raring to go. Australia will be the favourites on paper having won the previous two titles in West Indies in 2010 and in Sri Lanka in 2012.
Meg Lanning, 21, will lead the women in yellow and the team will count on star player Ellyse Perry to deliver the goods as she did in Sri Lanka. Perry said there's a lot of work to be done for young girls to join cricket, however, she's happy that on the game front, the players now put up a professional show.
"The game at the top level is more professional than ever, and there a great many more opportunities for young girls and women to be involved in the sport at any level," Perry said. "In this respect, the game continues to grow simultaneously at a professional and grass roots level.
"We [Cricket Australia] have taken great strides in developing cricket into a sport that attracts females from all walks of life, and cricket is a sport that truly celebrates and supports diversity. Excitingly, there is still plenty of work ahead to ensure it becomes further established as the number one sport of choice for young girls across the nation and globally."
India's World T20 campaign will begin on March 24 against Sri Lanka, and they have made a lot of changes to the team. Opener Latika Kumari and left-arm spinner Sravanthi Naidu's latest inclusions in the team have come as a surprise because Kumari last played for India in 2009 while Naidu is uncapped in the T20 format.
Madhuri Mehta last played for India in March 2012 and the inclusion of another uncapped player Shikha Pandey has also been announced. The captain -- Mithali Raj -- however, is an experienced campaigner.
Group A: Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, Ireland
Group B: England, West Indies, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh
Squads:
Australia: Meg Lanning (c), Alex Blackwell, Nicole Bolton, Jess Cameron, Sarah Coyte, Rene Farrell, Holly Ferling, Alyssa Healy, Julie Hunter, Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Beth Mooney, Erin Osborne, Ellyse Perry, Elyse Villani
Bangladesh: Salma Khatun (c), Ayasha Rahman, Fahima Khatun, Fargana Hoque, Jahanara Alam, Khadija Tul Kubra, Lata Mondal, Nuzhat Tasnia, Panna Ghosh, Rumana Ahmed, Sanjida Islam, Shaila Sharmin, Shamima Sultana, Sharmin Akhter, Shohaly Akther
England: Charlotte Edwards (c), Tammy Beaumont, Kate Cross, Jodie Dibble, Georgia Elwiss, Lydia Greenway, Rebecca Grundy, Jenny Gunn, Danielle Hazell, Amy Jones, Heather Knight, Natalie Sciver, Anya Shrubsole, Sarah Taylor, Fran Wilson
India: Mithali Raj (c), Soniya Dabir, Archana Das, Jhulan Goswami, Karu Jain, Harmanpreet Kaur, Latika Kumari, Smriti Mandhana, Madhuri Mehta, Sravanthi Naidu, Shikha Pandey, Poonam Raut, Shubhlakshmi Sharma, Gouher Sultana, Poonam Yadav
Ireland: Isobel Joyce (c), Laura Delany, Emma Flanagan, Jennifer Gray, Cecilia Joyce, Amy Kenealy, Louise McCarthy, Kate McKenna, Lucy O'Reilly, Eimear Richardson, Rebecca Rolfe, Melissa Scott-Hayward, Clare Shillington, Elena Tice, Mary Waldron
New Zealand: Suzie Bates (c), Nicola Browne, Sam Curtis, Sophie Devine, Maddie Green, Georgia Guy, Holly Huddleston, Hayley Jensen, Felicity Leydon-Davis, Sara McGlashan, Frances Mackay, Katey Martin, Morna Nielsen, Katie Perkins, Rachel Priest
Pakistan: Sana Mir (c), Anam Amin, Asmavia Iqbal, Batool Fatima, Bismah Maroof, Javeria Khan, Marina Iqbal, Nahida Khan, Nain Abidi, Nida Dar, Qanita Jalil, Sadia Yousuf, Sania Khan, Sidra Ameen, Sumaiya Siddiqi
South Africa: Mignon du Preez (c), Trisha Chetty, Moseline Daniels, Shandre Fritz, Shabnim Ismail, Marizanne Kapp, Lizelle Lee, Marcia Letsoalo, Sunette Loubser, Sune Luus, Nadine Moodley, Andrie Steyn, Chloe Tryon, Yolandi van der Westhuizen, Dane van Niekerk
Sri Lanka: Shashikala Siriwardene (c), Chamari Atapattu, Nilakshi de Silva, Chandima Gunaratne, Eshani Lokusuriyage, Chamari Polgampola, Yasoda Mendis, Hasini Perera, Udeshika Prabodhani, Oshadi Ranasinghe, Inoka Ranaweera, Deepika Rasangika, Maduri Samuddika, Rebeca Vandort, Sripali Weerakkody
West Indies: Merissa Aguilleira (c), Shemaine Campbelle, Shanel Daley, Deandra Dottin, Chinelle Henry, Stacy-Ann King, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Natasha McLean, Anisa Mohammed, Subrina Munroe, Shaquana Quintyne, Shakera Selman, Tremayne Smartt, Stafanie Taylor
