Nooshin Al Khadeer appointed interim head coach of Indian women's team for upcoming Bangladesh tour

The Indian women’s team will soon be leaving for Bangladesh, where they’re set to face the neighboring team in a three-match ODI series followed by as many games in a T20I series. While the players have been gearing up for the tour which begins on July 9, Sunday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to announce the team’s head coach.

Notably, the Indian women’s team is without a head coach ever since Ramesh Powar stepped down from the role. The Women in Blue faced Australia in a five-match T20I series in December 2022 with Hrishikesh Kanitkar as the batting coach, and also competed in the Women’s T20 World Cup earlier this year, in South Africa, without a head coach.

Reports suggest that Amol Muzumdar is all set to take the responsibility and step into the role, but the board is yet to make an official announcement. With India’s tour of Bangladesh fast approaching, the board has appointed former India cricketer Nooshin Al Khadeer as the interim head coach as she will be taking up the responsibility for the bilateral series.

Notably, under Nooshin’s leadership, India’s U19 team, captained by Shafali Verma, emerged victorious in the first-ever Women’s U19 World Cup that was held in South Africa in January 2023. The 2005 World Cup finalist was also in charge of the U23 team which recently clinched the Emerging Asia Cup title in Hong Kong. 

The Women in Blue are scheduled to depart for Bangladesh on Thursday, July 6, as the team will assemble in Mumbai on July 5, Wednesday. Nooshin is currently the head coach of the Railways team in the Indian domestic arena. The Railways side have the most number of title wins to their name and have been a dominant force in the domestic competitions.

In the first-ever Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2023, Nooshin was part of Gujarat Titans’ coaching setup and served the team as their bowling coach. The former Hyderabadi cricketer has been mentoring young female cricketers and collaborating closely with the NCA for the past two years. Nooshin’s assistants during the Bangladesh visit will include NCA faculty members Apurva Desai and Rajib Dutta.