She has scored a lot of runs there

Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has opined that India’s chances of winning the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 could depend on how they fare in the Powerplay overs. He highlighted that Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma could control the game with the bat, pointing out that the Indian vice-captain has an excellent record in England.

The Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 will be played in England from Friday, June 12, onwards. India will begin their campaign with a clash against Pakistan on Sunday, June 14.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, ‘Aakash Chopra,’ the former India batter reckoned that the opening combination of Mandhana, especially considering she likes batting in English conditions, and Shafali could be among the keys to India’s prospects in the global T20 event.

“The Indian girls have won the 50-over World Cup. Can they win the 20-over World Cup? That’s the big question. It’s a good team. Where do you win T20 games? One is if you control the Powerplay with the bat and with the ball. With the bat, Shafali Varma’s consistent avatar is very, very good,” Chopra said.

“Smriti Mandhana will be there with her. Smriti Mandhana in England is another beast altogether. She has scored a lot of runs there. So, Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma, as your Powerplay players, can actually control the game. One of them should bat deep into the innings, which they can,” he added.

Chopra noted that the onus will be on Richa Ghosh and Harmanpreet Kaur to make the most of the death overs with the bat.

“Then followed by Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Richa Ghosh. The last five overs’ responsibility will be on Richa Ghosh and Harmanpreet Kaur. You will expect Deepti Sharma to continue playing as attackingly as she has started doing in the WPL. It seems like we are actually quite set in batting. We are as good as any other World Cup team in batting,” he observed.

Smriti Mandhana has amassed 4,333 runs at an average of 29.88 in 160 T20I innings. She has a much better record in England, having scored 650 runs at an average of 38.23 in 19 innings.

“Since it’s England and it would swing, Renuka Singh Thakur’s value increases” – Aakash Chopra on India’s bowling heading into Women’s T20 World Cup 2026

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that the focus will be on Renuka Singh Thakur, especially considering the seamer-friendly English conditions, Arundhati Reddy, and Kranti Gaud with the ball in the Powerplay overs.

“In bowling, again, the Powerplay overs, whether it’s Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, or Kranti Gaud, the focus will be on them. Even if Nandani Sharma plays, she will have a bigger role in the death overs. Since it’s England and it would swing, Renuka Singh Thakur’s value increases,” he said.

The analyst added that India’s middle-over and death-over performances with the ball could define how far they reach in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026.

“Death overs, that will be the big challenge, because we get our spinners to bowl the death overs many times. How we bowl in the death overs might actually define. We might end the Powerplay on equal terms, but can we grab them with spin in the middle overs, and whether we can bowl well in the death overs, I think that will be the defining part,” Chopra observed.

Aakash Chopra opined that India have the team to beat South Africa and Australia in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 group phase, and then go on to win the tournament. He added that winning the 50-over and 20-over World Cups together will be a different kind of domination.