Women’s World Cup 2025
Dates: September 30 through November 2
The Women’s World Cup begins on Tuesday, with the formidable Australia defending their title from 2022, and captain Nat Sciver-Brunt’s England searching for a first major tournament win since 2017.
India and Sri Lankaare both in excellent form, and they are looking to win their first World Cup in either women’s game format.
The eight-team, 50-over tournament kicks off with a co-host team playing one another in Guwahati at 10:30 BST (15:00 local time), each team then playing one another in the semi-finals and final on November 2 in Navi Mumbai.
England
England have experienced a period of upheaval following the Ashes disappointment at the start of the year, with Charlotte Edwards taking over as coach from Jon Lewis and Heather Knight taking over as captain and Nat Sciver-Brunt.
They started the home summer by thrashing West Indies in both one-day international (ODI) and Twenty20 formats, but fell short against a far superior India side, with two series defeats.
Although Sciver-Brunt has resumed bowling in the warm-up matches after recovering from an injury, Hartley has chosen Emma Lamb to watch her. She is also their most consistent batter in her first ICC appearance.
Lamb finished the summer with 17 fifty-plus scores across all formats and hit 81 while playing at number five in the warm-up win over India. She had lost her place in England under Lewis, but she was called back after her strong domestic performances for Lancashire.
“It is going to be an interesting tournament for Lamb. She has batted consistently and consistently in England this summer,” Hartley said.
Australia
The defending champions, who surprisingly did not win the T20 crown last year, are strong favorites to win back-to-back 50-over titles.
It will take something spectacular to knock Alyssa Healy’s side off the top with staggering batting depth, an unending pot of all-rounders, and confidence to take from an Indian team’s 2-1 series win before the tournament.
They have lost batter Grace Harris to injury but it is not a huge blow as her place in the starting XI was not guaranteed, and she has been replaced by Heather Graham, but Hartley has selected top-order batter Phoebe Litchfield as her pick.
Given how stacked with talent and experience it is, Litchfield is now one of the most significant players in the top order of Australia, she said. “This is such a feat for a 22-year-old,” she said.
India
With the benefits of its franchise T20 tournament and the Women’s Premier League (WPL), it seems like India’s golden opportunity to play a World Cup mostly on its own soil.
They may not know the Indian venues used for the group stages (Guwahati, Indore, and Visakhapatnam), but they should enjoy the advantages of home fans.
They outplayed England over the summer, particularly impressing with how much they have improved in the field and their athleticism.
Their batting is beautifully led by Smriti Mandhana, and they were strengthened by Renuka Singh Thakur’s return during the Australia series. Harmanpreet Kaur is a very experienced leader.
However, Kranti Goud, 22, who overcame a nervous start on debut to take nine wickets in three games, including 6-52 in the series decider at Chester-le-Street, was one of the most exciting talents to emerge against England.
“You can expect some inconsistency from Goud because she is still so raw, but her early impact has been so promising”, said Hartley.
New Zealand
New Zealanddelivered a huge surprise by winning the T20 World Cup in 2024, beating South Africa in the final after England exited in the group stage and Australia and India were beaten in the semis.
The White Ferns are the only team other than England and Australia to win a 50-over World Cup, having triumphed in 2000.
Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine, and Melie Kerr are among the world’s top players, but they have typically struggled to find depth of talent enough to keep up their composure.
Hartley advises keeping an eye on fellow spinner Eden Carson, who is a star all-rounder with plenty of experience in India thanks to the WPL and was also the T20 World Cup’s leading wicket-taker.
She explained: “Carson doesn’t always get the headlines or take bundles of wickets but she’s become really important for New Zealandin terms of tying opponents down, with an economy rate below five in ODIs and below seven in T20s.
South Africa
South Africa lost to England in the semis of the previous 50-over edition after coming home from a heartbreaker in the T20 World Cups, which included two straight finals and two losses.
Similar to New Zealand, they have star quality but often depend too heavily on their top players, including captain Laura Wolvaardt -one of the world’s most consistent ODI batters – and fiery all-rounder Marizanne Kapp.
Dane van Niekerk, the former captain, resigned from her position after her international retirement and started working with the team before the competition, but she was not chosen for the final squad.
However, they are gaining more experience playing for franchises all over the world, which has significantly improved their standing. Nadine de Klerk is one of those players who has benefited.
“Kapp has been South Africa’s superstar for such a long time now but De Klerk has been able to take some of the pressure off her,” explained Hartley.
“She’s played over 100 times for South Africa now. As a bowler, she’s consistent in the middle overs with plenty of variations and is a powerful striker with the bat.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lankaalso have home advantage, playing most of their group games at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, where they can become accustomed to the ground and the conditions.
They can throw a few surprises at them, especially with a talented spinner line-up that won a shocking T20 series match in England last year. They have yet to reach a World Cup semi-final.
They struggle for contributions when Chamari Athapaththu, their most experienced and skilled batter, makes a contribution when she misses out, but do so under the guidance of her inspired leadership.
The 35-year-old has played 115 ODIs for Sri Lankasince her debut in 2010 and has become her country’s talisman ever since.
“It’s an obvious pick but you can’t see Sri Lankahaving much success unless Athapaththu has a brilliant tournament,” said Hartley.
She’s so destructive at the top of the order and is confident enough to defeat the best bowlers, but she’ll need some extra help from the starting lineup in ODIs.
Pakistan
Because of ongoing political unrest between their nation and India, Pakistan could benefit from being familiar with conditions like Sri Lanka. They are permanently based in Colombo for this tournament.
They lack batting firepower and depth but almost pulled off a chase of 292 against South Africa in their pre-tournament series, with a century for reliable top-order batter Sidra Ameen.
Their bowlers could be in play if the surfaces are slow and low because they have a lot of spinners and have significantly improved their field.
However, they rely on Fatima Sana, Hartley’s captain and all-rounder, to keep an eye on them.
” She’s only 23 and has only been appointed captain in the past year, but Sana is so important to Pakistan with how she leads from the front and how passionate she is, “said Hartley.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh are a team that lacks powerful batters and power hitters but relies instead on discipline and consistency.
They only managed to get past the World Cup Qualifier, defeating West Indies by just 0. 013 on net run-rate, to claim the title.
Bangladesh have also suffered from the schedule – those qualifiers took place in April, and they have not played since then.
Their games against the teams on their level, such as Pakistan and Sri Lankawill be competitive and closely fought, but it is more than likely that they will fall considerably short against the top four.
Nigar Sultana Joty, their captain and wicketkeeper, will be crucial to their batting.
” Nigar takes on a lot of responsibility for Bangladesh, similarly to Sri Lanka’s Athapaththu, “explained Hartley.
Related topics
- Women’s Cricket Team of England
- Cricket
Source: BBC
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