Smriti Mandhana, India’s new captain, has earned her job

Smriti Mandhana wasn’t just the obvious choice to replace Harmanpreet Singh, she was the only choice. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

The queen of batting is all set for a new reign.

Smriti Mandhana, the best batter in women’s cricket, has taken over the captaincy of the Indian team from Harmanpreet Kaur. She wasn’t just the obvious choice; she was the only choice.

She commands respect from her teammates. And she is the most experienced player in the team after Harmanpreet.

Smriti is not new to the leadership role, either. She has stepped in when Harmanpreet wasn’t available on a few occasions. She has also led Royal Challengers Bengaluru to two WPL titles. The first of those titles, in 2024, brought an end to the agonisingly long wait for a trophy for the Bengaluru-based franchise, whose men’s team used to falter after promising much, season after season.

Smriti has an opportunity to end a title-drought for the Women in Blue, too. They have never won the T20 World Cup. They didn’t even make it to the knockout stage in the last two editions.

Strengthening the Indian team for the shortest format should be her priority. India is excellent in the ODI format; the World Cup victory last year underlined that fact.

The Indians are pretty good in the longest format, too, though women get to play Test matches only once in a blue moon. They were ruthless against England in the historic Women’s Test at Lord’s recently. But, there is work to be done in their T20 side.

They have struggled against stronger teams like Australia and South Africa. They need to address the issue of batting firepower in the middle-order, instead of leaving everything to Richa Ghosh. They have to find, and develop, some quality all-rounders. Smriti, and the team management, will have to address those issues well in time for the next T20 World Cup in 2028.

Along with privilege, captaincy also brings in added pressure. Given her gift, ambition and fearlessness, it is unlikely to affect Smriti’s batting. Who knows, it may help, even.