Smriti Mandhana Takes Charge as India's New All-Format Captain Ahead of Zimbabwe Series

Smriti Mandhana is stepping into her role as India's all-format captain as the team prepares to face Zimbabwe in a historic ODI and T20I series. This marks a new chapter for Indian women's cricket following Harmanpreet Kaur's resignation. The series, commencing on October 16, will feature a mix of experienced players and fresh talent, with notable changes in the squad. Discover more about the team dynamics and the significance of this series in the full article.

By Narendra Chaudhary Oct 7, 2026, 01:54 IST

Mandhana Steps into Leadership Role

In a significant development for Indian women's cricket, Smriti Mandhana is set to commence her journey as the all-format captain when the team faces Zimbabwe in the forthcoming ODI and T20I series.

Mandhana takes over the captaincy from Harmanpreet Kaur, who announced her resignation from the role on October 6, marking the conclusion of her leadership period.

This series will be historic as India will engage in their inaugural bilateral international series against Zimbabwe, featuring three T20Is and an equal number of ODIs, starting from October 16.

The T20I squad sees the inclusion of newcomers Niki Prasad and Jintimani Kalita, while Nandani Sharma joins the ODI squad, having previously played in T20Is.

Notably, Bharti Fulmali, Shreyanka Patil, Renuka Singh, and Radha Yadav, who were part of the gold medal-winning team at the recent Asian Games, have been omitted from the T20I lineup. They are replaced by Minnu Mani, Anushka Sharma, Niki Prasad, and Jintimani Kalita.

The T20I squad consists of: Smriti Mandhana (c), Shafali Verma, Niki Prasad, Harmanpreet Kaur, Anushka Sharma, Richa Ghosh, G Kamalini, Deepti Sharma, Prema Rawat, Sree Charani, Nandni Sharma, Kranti Gaud, Arundhati Reddy, Jintimani Kalita, and Minnu Mani.

For the ODI squad, the players include: Smriti Mandhana (c), Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Harmanpreet Kaur, Harleen Deol, Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, Yastika Bhatia, Vaishnavi Sharma, Nandni Sharma, Sree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare, and Renuka Thakur.