Women's T20 World Cup 2023: Ten players to watch out for

ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 will get underway on February 10 in South Africa and the top cricketing nations will be seen battling it out for the crown. Australia will head into the marquee tournament as the defending champions. The participating teams have many top-drawer players at their disposal who have taken the international arena by storm with their performances. However, there are certain cricketers that might garner a lot of eyeballs in the forthcoming T20 extravaganza. Here are ten players to watch out for in the T20 World Cup: 10. Renuka Singh Thakur Renuka Singh Thakur has taken the international circuit by storm from the time she donned the blue jersey. The 26-year-old has featured in seven ODIs and picked up 18 scalps at an economy of 4.62. In the T20Is, she has bagged 23 scalps in 25 matches at an economy of 6.48. Renuka was quite phenomenal in the Commonwealth Games 2022 as she made the ball talk at the start of the innings and provided India with early breakthroughs. The ace pacer featured in five games and picked up 11 wickets at an impressive economy of 5.47. However, India’s pace spearhead was not at her best in the T20I series against Australia. She could manage only two scalps in five outings and leaked runs at an economy of 8.50. The team management would hope she finds her mojo back and put up a show with the ball in the forthcoming T20 carnival. 9. Sophia Dunkley Sophia Dunkley has been a proven performer for England in the white-ball circuit. The 24-year-old has featured in 28 ODIs and scored 746 runs at a strike rate of 85.25. In the shortest format, she has smashed 574 runs in 39 T20Is at a strike rate of 115.03. Dunkley’s stature in the international arena grew leaps and bounds from the time she began opening for England. She has played a fearless brand of cricket and taken the attack to the opposition right from the get-go, providing Heather Knight & co. with rapid starts. Dunkley has played 16 T20Is as an opening batter and smashed 415 runs at a brilliant strike rate. The Surrey-born has been in top form, scoring 154 runs in five games in the T20I series against the West Indies. She would eager to set the upcoming T20 World Cup on fire with her batting exploits. 8. Darcie Brown Darcie Brown is one the rare breeds of fast-bowlers who can clock over 120 kmph consistently. The 19-year-old has featured in 12 ODIs and picked up 20 wickets at an economy of 4.87. In the shortest format, she has bagged 12 wickets in 13 games at an economy of 6.22. Brown has ratted top-quality batters with her fiery pace and wreaked havoc with the ball. She adds another dimension to Australia’s bowling attack and the speedster could prove to be a difficult customer in the seam-friendly conditions of South Africa. Brown has been in a rich vein of form of late. In the recently concluded T20I series against India, she bagged four scalps in three games at an economy of 6.91. The team management would hope she carries on the good work and shines in the T20 World Cup 2023. 7. Hayley Matthews Hayley Matthews has been the pillar of the West Indies batting line-up across formats. The 24-year-old has held the innings together and shepherded the innings beautifully. Also, she has been impeccable with her lines and lengths and chipped in with crucial wickets. Matthews has featured in 74 T20Is and notched up 1326 runs at a strike rate of 103.43. On the bowling front, she has picked up 72 scalps at an economy of 5.67. The flamboyant cricketer has shown her all-round prowess in the 50-over format too, scoring 1915 runs in 75 ODIs and picking up 89 scalps at an economy of 4.06. However, Matthews has been struggling to find her batting form of late. In the T20I series against England, she could manage only 74 runs in five matches at a strike rate of 102.77. The ace all-rounder would need to put her best foot forward if the West Indies are looking to have any hopes of lifting their second T20 World title. 6. Smriti Mandhana Smriti Mandhana is one of the finest opening batters going around in world cricket. The 26-year-old has featured in 77 ODIs and aggregated 3073 runs at an average of 43.28. Coming to the shortest format, she has scored 2565 runs in 107 games at a strike rate of 123.55. Mandhana has put up an exhibition of her glorious stroke play in the Commonwealth Games 2022 and took bowling attacks to the cleaners. The southpaw plundered 159 runs in five games at a stunning strike rate of 151.42. Her batting exploits were instrumental in India clinching the silver medal. However, the ace batter was not at her consistent best in the recently culminated T20I series against Australia. Barring her breathtaking half-century in the second game, Mandhana was not able to set the stage alight with her batting displays. The Mumbai-born would look to bring her A-game into play in the upcoming T20 extravaganza in South Africa. 5. Alyssa Healy Alyssa Healy has been the lynchpin of the Australian batting for over a decade. The 32-year-old has destroyed bowling line-ups with her flamboyant stroke play and provided her side with brisk starts on a consistent basis. Also, she has been lightning-quick behind the wickets. Healy has featured in 94 ODIs and scored 2639 runs at a strike rate of 100.18. When it comes to the T20Is, the wicketkeeper batter has accumulated 2300 runs in 136 matches at a strike rate of 127.91. Healy is known to come to her own in ICC tournaments. In the T20 World Cup 2020, she knocked the winds out of bowling attacks and hammered 236 runs at a superb strike rate of 156.29. Then in the 2022 World Cup, she plundered 509 runs in nine games at a strike rate of 103.67 for Australia. The swashbuckling batter would be itching to set the T20 World Cup 2023 ablaze with her batting exploits. 4. Sophie Devine Sophie Devine has been a giant of a player in world cricket. The 33-year-old has been a marauder with the bat at the top of the order and has dismantled bowling line-ups for fun. Also, she has the might to bowl at any phase of the game and provided her side with timely breakthroughs. Devine has featured in 115 T20Is and amassed 2950 runs at a strike rate of 122.00. On the bowling front, the ace all-rounder has picked up 109 wickets at an economy of 6.33. She has also shown her class in the ODIs, accumulating 3330 runs in 134 matches and taking 89 scalps for New Zealand. Devine has been an inspirational captain for the white ferns and shepherded her team to a Bronze medal victory at CWG 2022. She led the way with the bat, scoring 177 runs in five matches at a strike rate of 115.68. Also, the ace all-rounder displayed her bowling might and bagged six scalps at an economy of 6.59. As New Zealand step into the upcoming T20 World Cup, the onus will be again on their skipper to deliver the goods with both bat and ball. 3. Sophie Ecclestone Sophie Ecclestone is England’s premier spinner across formats. The 23-year-old has featured in 55 ODIs and picked up 87 scalps at an economy of 3.68. Talking about the T20Is, the ace spinner has bagged 86 scalps in 65 T20Is at an economy of 5.90. The sorcery that Ecclestone has shown on the cricket field has been second to none. She has brought even the docile surfaces to life and ripped through batting line-ups. The 2022 World Cup was a classic example of her masterful bowling. The ace spinner bagged 21 scalps in nine games played in the marquee tournament. Ecclestone weaved her magic in the recently culminated white-ball series against the West Indies and bagged a total of nine scalps in seven limited-over games. She will be key to England’s chances at the forthcoming T20 World Cup. 2. Marizanne Kapp Marizanne Kapp has been a torch-bearer for South African cricket. ODIs have been her happy hunting ground where she has racked up 2367 runs in 129 matches at an average of 30.34 and bagged 147 wickets. The 33-year-old has fared well in the shortest format as well, smashing 1046 runs in 84 T20Is and picking up 66 scalps in those outings. Kapp has put up an exhibition of her power-hitting might time and time again and changed the course of the match in a matter of few deliveries. With the ball, the ace all-rounder has been South Africa’s enforcer in the middle phases of the innings and also displayed the ability to deliver at the powerplay and the death. Kapp was quite exceptional in the 2022 World Cup as she smashed 203 runs in eight matches and bagged 12 wickets at an economy of 4.73. Her all-round brilliance was instrumental in South Africa reaching the semi-finals. As the Proteas bid to clinch their maiden ICC tournament in the T20 World Cup 2023, Kapp will again be counted upon to do the heavy lifting for the side. 1. Meg Lanning Meg Lanning is one of the best batters that Australian cricket has produced. She has amassed truckloads of runs across formats and stamped her authority on the cricket field. In the T20Is. the 30-year-old has accumulated 3211 runs at a strike rate of 116.55. Besides her batting prowess, Lanning is one of the greatest minds to have graced the sport. In the year 2014, she was handed the reins of the Australian side and has guided the team to perfection, making them an indestructible force in world cricket. Under her leadership, the Aussies have won three world T20 titles, an ODI World Cup, and a gold medal in the 2022 Commonwealth Games. After piloting Australia to victory in CWG 2022, Lanning took a break from cricket for personal reasons and returned to the international arena as the captain of the Women in Green and Gold in the ongoing ODI series against Pakistan in Brisbane. In the first game of the series, the batting maestro struck a blistering half-century and it seemed as if she had never left. She would like to add another feather to her cap and steer the Aussies to victory in the T20 World Cup 2023.

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Women's T20 World Cup 2023: Ten players to watch out for

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