The biggest question appears to be who will occupy the number three and five roles. Against Pakistan, it was Jemimah who occupied the number three role. This represented something of a strategy pivot. In the pre-match preparatory series against England, Yastika batted at three in all three matches. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

India has begun its pursuit of an elusive Women’s T20 World Cup trophy in the tenth edition of the tournament in England and Wales.

Coming into the competition, it seems that batting is undoubtedly Harmanpreet Kaur and Co.’s stronger suit. In Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, and the skipper herself, it boasts four batters in the top 12 batters in the ICC World Rankings, and it has previously shown itself capable of dizzying heights with bat in hand.

However, with an embarrassment of riches to call upon, India must decide how it wishes to arrange its batting order so that it can maximise its batting returns. The signs so far are that the Indian management has been a little indecisive about which way it wants to do this.

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Accelerators and fast starters

Contained within its top six, India has two distinct profiles of batters.

In Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Harmanpreet Kaur, it has three batters who are among the best exponents of a classical method of batting. All three start slowly, get set, and then accelerate once their eye is set, and are capable of doing this to destructive, match-defining extents.

On the other hand, it has three batters who have shown the ability to start their innings’ with a quicker starting tempo by running towards danger slightly earlier on in the innings in Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh, and Yastika Bhatia (albeit in the limited sample size of her nascent international return),.

Shafali and Yastika have played this role at the top of the order (as an opener and number three respectively) while Richa has established a niche towards the end of the innings.

The question for India thus becomes how it can effectively arrange its top six in order to effectively navigate risk and reward to combine volume and tempo of runs.

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Who’d be a number three? 

There are plenty of certainties in this space. Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma have compiled an extensive portfolio of work to lock themselves in as the openers, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur is generally settled in at the number four slot.

Meanwhile, there has been some discussion about Richa Ghosh’s batting position, with Harmanpreet Kaur even saying she would “love to send her from ball one” after India’s tournament-opener against Pakistan. However, her 17-ball 34 in that match typifies the profile of innings she has carved out a niche playing in the second half of the innings.

Instead, the biggest question appears to be who will occupy the number three and five roles. Against Pakistan, it was Jemimah who occupied the number three role for one from seven balls, while Yastika sat out and Bharti Fulmali batted at five.

This represented something of a strategy pivot. In the pre-match preparatory series against England, Yastika batted at three in all three matches and was India’s second-highest run-scorer with 119 runs (just one run behind Harmanpreet).

There is a strong argument for this as well. The one-drop batting position is where Jemimah has batted most regularly in T20 cricket, and it is where she bats for Delhi Capitals in the Women’s Premier League as well.

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But the counter to that is a concern about a proliferation of slow starters. If she is placed between Smriti and Harmanpreet, India could potentially have three players who take their time to get going carded consecutively. The danger in this is that it could lead to periods of stagnation in the scoring rate, particularly if Shafali gets out.

While this is unlikely to be too much of a concern against most opposition, it could be an area of weakness while setting totals on flat pitches or chasing big totals against stronger opposition.

Yastika meanwhile, has shown in a handful of appearances, that she can start her innings quickly although her strike-rate has generally dropped off as her innings progresses. This has similarly led to periods of stagnation, most notably in the second T20I against England where they put on 36 from 33 balls before Yastika was retired out in an ultimately unsuccessful chase.

Since Jan 1, 2024: Yastika Bhatia at number 3: 155 runs @ 51.66 in four innings, SR 126.01 Jemimah Rodrigues at number 3: 552 runs @ 27.60 in 24 innings, SR 128.07]

Speaking at a roundtable with media ahead of the T20 World Cup, former England captain Nasser Hussain threw his weight behind Yastika for the number three role, saying, “Her strike rate is excellent, she’s a real boundary hitter. I quite like her at number three after the dynamic Shafali and Smriti Mandhana. Then you’ve got Jemimah and Harmanpreet after who can steady the ship if you need to or kick on, and then you got Richa to kick on even more.”

“I quite like her at three and I quite like batting depth that everyone then moves down one and it gives you a long batting line up,” he added.

A situational approach

The solution could perhaps be a strategy India has dabbled with in the past; a flexible batting approach based on entry points. The numbers are insightful in informing this.

 When batting in the first six, Yastika has seemed at her best, scoring quicker both overall and in the first ten balls of her innings. However, she slows down as the innings progresses, with her strike-rate outside the PowerPlay dropping in a manner that mirrors her overall strike-rate drop as the innings progresses).

It is worth noting though, that Yastika is a bolter in any of these conversations, having only recently made a return to the international set-up and having played only a handful of games since 2024. Thus, her numbers have to be taken with the caveat of a small sample size.

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However, the willingness of the team management to give her three games at number three does indicate that there is some appetite for her as an option at number three.

For Jemimah, the numbers seem to show that she is stronger outside the PowerPlay. Both her overall strike-rate and first 10 balls strike-rate jump significantly when she is playing from overs seven to 15.

Flexibility thus introduces the optimal solution. If a wicket falls early, Yastika bats at number three with the remit of maximising the first six overs with just two fielders outside the ring, and if India gets off to a solid start, Jemimah bats three to keep the momentum going.

World Cup horizons and beyond

If India is to secure its maiden T20 World Cup trophy, it will need to overcome the big teams starting with Australia and South Africa in the group stage, and it will need its batting to fire in comprehensive fashion to do so.

But beyond the T20 World Cup, developing a set of young batters that are flexible and versatile could prove of significant benefit for India in the long-term as it looks to move its game from strength to strength.

(Data credit: CricViz. Stats accounted for until June 15)

Published on Jun 17, 2026