Fantasy: Deepti Sharma should be your go-to player

India Women will take on West Indies Women in the third T20I of the tri-series, also involving South Africa Women, at Buffalo Park, East London on Monday (January 23). The Women in Blue hammered South Africa by 27 runs in the first game of the series, while West Indies lost to the home side by 44 runs on Saturday.

Ground details

This entire series is being played at Buffalo Park and the first two games have ended up being low scoring. India managed 147/6 in the first encounter and then restricted South Africa to 120/9 in their 20 overs. Sune Luus and Co. then got 141/5 in the second match and stopped West Indies at 97/8. In this series, the batters here have scored runs at an average of 18, while a wicket has fallen every 17.1 deliveries. However, the scoring rate has been just 6.3. The numbers are not too different for spinners and seamers, so it would be ideal to have a balanced combination.

* Harmanpreet Kaur and Pooja Vastrakar didn’t feature in the first T20I but would become obvious picks if they are available. 

Suggested teams

While you could go for the above team, you can also choose your team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Then, based on your preferences, the platform will guide you through creating the ideal fantasy XI.

Captaincy suggestions

For small leagues: Deepti Sharma (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt)

For grand leagues: Deepti Sharma (capt), Hayley Matthews (vice-capt)

Stats that matter 

Deepti Sharma should be your skipper. Since 2022, the all-rounder has slammed 403 runs in 20 innings at an average of 36.63 and a strike rate of 136.6. On top of that, the offspinner has also claimed 32 wickets in this time frame at a strike rate of 17.3. She scored 33 off 23 in the first match and also claimed three wickets.

Smriti Mandhana has 601 runs in 22 innings at an average of 31.63 and a strike rate of 133 since 2022. 

Debutant Amanjot Kaur played a crucial knock of 41* off 30 deliveries against South Africa and propelled India close to the 150-run mark. 

Grand League punts

While India dropped Jemimah Rodrigues from the playing XI in the last T20I against Australia in Mumbai after a string of low scores, the absence of Shafali opens a spot in the team for the Mumbai batter. In T20Is since 2022, she has 463 runs in 19 innings at an average of 35.61.

Hayley Matthews is West Indies’ best player. The skipper scored 23 runs in the first match and also got one wicket. She averages less than 20 with the bat in this format but has a balls/wicket of 18.3. She is your best bet in the West Indies set-up.

Probable XIs

India - Smriti Mandhana (c), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Devika Vaidya/Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Amanjot Kaur, Sneh Rana, Radha Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Anjali Sarvani.

West Indies - Hayley Matthews (c), Shemaine Campbelle, Shamilia Connell, Britney Cooper, Afy Fletcher, Shabika Gajnabi, Rashada Williams (wk), Chedean Nation, Kaysia Schultz, Shakera Selman, Karishma Ramharack.