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The India women’s team is reportedly set to tour Sri Lanka and England to play limited-overs games in the next few months alongside the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The England tour will have a special moment for the Indian women’s team as they will play the final game of the tour at the historic Lord’s Cricket Ground.
All these games will be crucial for the Women in Blue as they will count towards qualification for the next Women’s World Cup. As per sources from the BCCI, the team for the tour will be picked by the end of this month. The reports read, “The team will arrive in Sri Lanka on June 18. The first ODI is scheduled to take place on June 23, while the first T20I will be held on July 3. The tour will end with the last T20I on July 7.”
The source also addressed that the BCCI isn’t worried about the current civilian unrest in Sri Lanka as the Australia men’s team will also be touring there. “Even the Australian men’s cricket team is touring Lanka around the same time. So cricket shouldn’t be affected by that,” the source quoted.
After the Commonwealth Games, India will face England in three T20Is and three ODIs, with the historic game at Lord’s on 24 Sept 2022. Unfortunately, the tour will not include a Test against the Three Lions this time. “The BCCI requested the English Cricket Board to schedule a Test, but ECB couldn’t accede to the request, citing a busy schedule, which includes the ‘Hundred’ too, for them,” the source said.
If reports are to be believed, Ramesh Powar is set continue as the coach of the India women’s team, as his contract is till the T20 World Cup early next year. “We had appointed him in June last year and given him a two-year contract. He’s done a decent job so far. We have to give him time to produce the right results. Right now, we’ve sent Powar as an observer for the Women’s T20 Challenge in Pune, which will begin on May 23,” the source further added in a report to TOI.