Why Smriti Mandhana is Not Opening Today in IND-W vs ZIM-W 3rd T20I? Explained

India Women started the third T20I against Zimbabwe Women by winning the toss and opting to bat first. The fans expected Shafali Verma to open the batting with captain Smriti Mandhana, however, the Women in Blue had other ideas.

Mandhana, who is one of the best women cricketers and also the captain of this team, didn't come out to open the batting at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur. This came as a big surprise for the fans inside the stadium, who expected their favorite cricketer to come upfront.

Why Smriti Mandhana is Not Opening Today?

There is no particular reason for Smriti Mandhana not opening the batting during the IND-W vs ZIM-W 3rd T20I at Raipur. It indicates to a tactical decision being made by the Indian team management to give some game time to other batters in the Playing 11.

As a result, Anushka Sharma, who came in to bat at No.3 in the last two T20Is, opened the batting alongside Shafali Verma. It will give her more game time as India looks to settle the No. 3 conundrum.

The Indian team management looked set to try out different batting combinations in this dead-rubber. As a result, we saw some more surprises in India batting order for 3rd T20I vs Zimbabwe. Smriti Mandhana's replacement at the top order, Anushka Sharma scored 28 off 20 balls. Mandhana was expected to come next, however, Niki Prasad arrived to bat at No. 3.

The fans who were waiting for Smriti Mandhana new batting position were left disappointed in the end as the India captain didn't turn out to bat despite her team losing seven wickets. Mandhana prioritized giving the other batters a chance for some game time in the middle.

Historic Series For Smriti Mandhana

This series is Smriti Mandhana's first as India's full-time captain. The star cricketer got out for just 9 in the first T20I but scored a match-winning 47* in the second match. India won both the matches and she will be looking to keep her record intact.

Both India and Zimbabwe will play an ODI series following the T20Is. It will be an excellent opportunity for Zimbabwe to play against one of the best women's cricket teams in the world and the current 50-over champions. It will also be Mandhana's first ODI series as India's full-time captain, marking the start of a new journey for her.