News, Headingley, 17 June 2026 – Babette de Leede has decided her side will chase. The Netherlands captain won the toss in the teams’ first-ever women’s T20I meeting and, with low cloud hanging around Headingley, immediately pointed her bowlers towards India’s top order.
The Dutch make one change from Sunday’s tight defeat to Bangladesh, bringing in seamer Myrthe van den Raad for young batter Sanya Khurana. A longer bowling line-up looks sensible: the temperature has stayed below 20°C all morning and the pitch has worn a greenish tint since yesterday’s rain.
India have tweaked things too. Left-hander Yastika Bhatia and swing bowler Nandani Sharma come in for Bharti Fulmali and Arundhati Reddy. Neither Bhatia nor Nandani has played in this World Cup yet, so there is a small element of risk for Harmanpreet Kaur’s side – but one the captain was happy to accept.
“We’re quite pleased to bat first,” Harmanpreet said at the toss. “We really just wanted to challenge ourselves.”
That confidence stems from a 64-run win over Pakistan two days ago, a match dominated by Deepti Sharma’s clever off-spin and Shafali Verma’s early hitting. Former India coach WV Raman, watching on TV, felt the start today is just as crucial. “Even 140 here might be worth plenty if you strike early,” he told Sky Sports, pointing to heavy overhead conditions.
The Dutch are on a different footing. Their Birmingham opener showed potential – Bangladesh only crossed the line with four balls to spare – but a lack of middle-overs control hurt them. Assistant coach Caroline Salomons spoke frankly yesterday: “We need to hold our nerve in the thirteenth to seventeenth overs, it’s as simple as that.”
Teams
India: Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Shreyanka Patil, Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Nandani Sharma.
Netherlands: Heather Siegers, Phebe Molkenboer, Babette de Leede (capt, wk), Sterre Kalis, Robine Rijke, Frederique Overdijk, Iris Zwilling, Myrthe van den Raad, Caroline de Lange, Silver Siegers, Isabel van der Voning.
Headingley’s square usually quickens after lunch, so that extra Dutch seamer may well be busy. For India, another solid platform from Mandhana and Verma could make the difference – but as ever in northern England, the clouds might have the final say.
