IND vs SL: India name two new faces in Women’s T20I squad; Smriti Mandhana continues as vice-captain

The Indian women's cricket team has selected Gunalan Kamalini and Vaishnavi Sharma for their first international appearance in the upcoming five-match T20I series against Sri Lanka.

The series will be hosted in India from December 21 to 30, with Visakhapatnam staging the first two matches and Thiruvananthapuram hosting the remaining three.



Seventeen-year-old wicketkeeper-batter Kamalini has played nine matches for Mumbai Indians in the Women's Premier League.

However, Vaishnavi, aged 19, was not part of the WPL auction process.

These two newcomers replace Radha Yadav and Uma Chhetri, who were part of India's victorious ODI World Cup squad last month.

The team maintains its core leadership with Harmanpreet Kaur as captain and Smriti Mandhana as vice-captain.

Shafali Verma retains her place in the squad after replacing Pratika Rawal during the World Cup semifinal against Australia, when Rawal was sidelined due to injury.

This T20I series is scheduled just before the WPL 2026, which begins on January 9 in Navi Mumbai.

The series announcement came after the postponement of India's scheduled white-ball series against Bangladesh in December.

The most recent T20I encounter between India and Sri Lanka took place during the World Cup in October 2024.

India Women’s squad for 5-match T20I series vs Sri Lanka:

Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Harleen Deol, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Renuka Singh Thakur, Richa Ghosh (WK), G Kamalini (WK), Sree Charani, Vaishnavi Sharma

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