India eye whitewash against Zimbabwe in final T20I: Preview
What's the story
Team India, led by Smriti Mandhana, is all set to take on Zimbabwe in the third and final Women's T20I of the series in Raipur on Tuesday. The Women in Blue suffered a top-order collapse while chasing a paltry 115 in the series opener. India, who were home in the 16th over, claimed a clinical win in the second match. After winning the Asian Games gold, India are eyeing a series sweep against Zimbabwe.
Series progress
How the two WT20Is have panned out
Mandhana had a shaky start in the first WT20I as India's full-time captain, with Zimbabwe reducing them to 19/4.
However, Deepti Sharma and Niki Prasad's composed performances helped India recover from their early collapse and chase down 115.
In the second WT20I, India bounced back with a nine-wicket victory. Mandhana led from the front with an unbeaten 47 (25), while Shafali Verma scored a blistering 55 off just 25 deliveries.
Expect the Raipur surface to be two-paced.
Journey
Contrasting journeys
India have been in sublime form, winning 17 of their 26 WT20Is in 2026, their most in a calendar year, according to Cricbuzz.
Notably, India won 16 of their 23 completed games in 2018.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe are on a 22-match losing streak in the format. These are the most successive defeats by a side in WT20Is.
Player focus
Mandhana, Verma lead India's charge
Both Shafali and Mandhana have been giving India fine starts.
Notably, Shafali now has the most runs and 50-plus scores in a calendar year. Mandhana isn't too far in terms of runs.
While Shafali has slammed 922 runs from 26 WT20Is at an average of 38.41, Mandhana owns 821 runs from 24 WT20Is at an average of 39.09.
Lineups
A look at likely XIs
India Women (Probable XI): Smriti Mandhana (captain), Shafali Verma, Anushka Sharma, Harmanpreet Kaur, Niki Prasad, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), Arundhati Reddy, Shree Charani, Nandani Sharma, and Kranti Gaud.
Zimbabwe (Probable XI): Kelis Ndhlovu, Beloved Biza, Modester Mupachikwa (wicket-keeper), Sharne Mayers, Nyasha Gwanzura, Michelle Mavunga, Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, Francisca Chipare, Josephine Nkomo (captain), Olinder Chare, and Tendai Makusha.
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