Maiden call-up for two WPL stars as India announce T20I squad for Bangladesh series

Asha Sobhana and Sajana Sajeevan are among the fresh faces in the Indian squad announced on Monday, 15 April for the tour of Bangladesh later, starting 28 April.

Their inclusion comes on the back of impressive performances in the 2024 Women’s Premier League.

Sobhana etched her name in history by becoming the first Indian cricketer to achieve a five-wicket haul in WPL, recording figures of 5/22 against UP Warriorz.

With 12 wickets in 10 matches, she finished as the joint second-highest wicket-taker in the league, alongside Australia star Sophie Molineux.

Sajeevan announced herself to the world in the opening game of the WPL 2024 when, on her debut, she smashed a six off the last ball to win the game for her Mumbai Indians side against Delhi Capitals.

Playing lower down the order, Sajeevan scored 87 runs at a brisk pace of 158.18 – the second-best strike rate of the tournament.

The 16-member side will be led by captain Harmanpreet Kaur, with Smriti Mandhana acting as her deputy.

The series commences on 28 April with all five games to be played in Sylhet.

The series will be crucial for both teams as they prepare for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 later this year to be played in Bangladesh.

India squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Dayalan Hemalatha, Sajana Sajeevan, Richa Ghosh (wk), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Radha Yadav, Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Amanjot Kaur, Shreyanka Patil, Saika Ishaque, Asha Sobhana, Renuka Singh Thakur, Titas Sadhu.