Women's T20 World Cup 2023, India vs West Indies: 5 player battles to watch out for

After a successful start to their ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 campaign, India will look to make it two wins out of two when they take on West Indies at the Newlands Stadium in Cape Town on Wednesday, February 15.

The Women in Blue kickstarted their campaign with a thrilling seven-wicket victory over arch-rivals Pakistan, even if the scoreboard might suggest that it was a walk in the park. The games continue to come thick and fast at the T20 World Cup and with every contest proving to have large-scale ramifications on a team's fate in the tournament, it's imperative that the winning momentum sustains itself.

West Indies, on the other hand, suffered a comprehensive defeat at the hands of England in their tournament opener. After a tough outing across all facets of the game, they find themselves facing a must-win situation in Cape Town on Wednesday.

With this in mind, here's a look at five crucial player battles that could have a big say in how this clash pans out:

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#1 Smriti Mandhana vs Hayley Matthews

India are in for a massive boost with vice-captain Smriti Mandhana set to return for the clash against the West Indies. A finger injury kept the swashbuckling batter out of the XI for their T20 World Cup opener against Pakistan, but she seems to have recovered well to make the cut on Wednesday.

West Indies captain Hayley Matthews will then have to take matters into her own hands to ensure Mandhana doesn't tee off early. The off-spinner can take the ball away from the left-handed batter and would want to use that to try and better the head-to-head, having dismissed the superstar just once in T20Is till date.

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#2 Renuka Singh vs Stafanie Taylor

Over the last year or so, Renuka Singh has proven to be India's ace weapon in the powerplay. Her ability to swing the new ball into the right-handed batter brings the stumps into play, and she will fancy her chances against West Indies' star batter Stafanie Taylor.

The Jamaican all-rounder hasn't quite been amongst the runs in recent times and did not feature in the recent tri-series either. With the 2016 champions under pressure to put their T20 World Cup campaign on track, this is a matchup that Renuka could exploit to her advantage.

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#3 Jemimah Rodrigues vs Shamilia Connell

The lanky Shamilia Connell not only bowls at a decent pace, but also extracts good bounce owing to a high release point. She possesses a good short-pitched delivery that puts her in the mix against India's star from their win over Pakistan, Jemimah Rodrigues.

Rodrigues turned in a chasing masterclass to ensure that the Women in Blue kickstarted their T20 World Cup campaign on a high. It's important that she carries this forward into a rich vein of form for the tournament. Given her prowess against spin and her favor for sweeping the ball, extra pace and bounce is what the West Indies might look to target her with.

This automatically puts Connell, who has conceded just 12 runs off 18 deliveries in T20Is to the Indian prodigy thus far, in the mix.

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#4 Radha Yadav vs Shemaine Campbelle

One of India's unsung stars from their T20 World Cup opener triumph was Radha Yadav. The left-arm spinner bowled as well as she ever has and kept it very tight. She also varied her pace to great effect, picking up two wickets along the way.

Radha ought to fancy her prospects against Shemaine Campbell, who has been batting at No. 3 in recent times. The right-handed batter meandered along to a 37-ball 34 in the contest against England and West Indies will want more from her this time around.

She could have an arduous task against Radha, however, having scored a mere nine runs off 34 deliveries against her in T20Is while also being dismissed thrice. With India looking to tie the West Indian batters down in knots, they will count on their left-arm tweaker to deliver the goods in Wednesday's T20 World Cup bout.

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#5 Harmanpreet Kaur vs Afy Fletcher

Wrist-spinners are tasked with breaking games open in the middle overs, and in Afy Fletcher, West Indies have that option to call upon. With Harmanpreet Kaur looking to lay down a marker at the T20 World Cup, Fletcher could be thrown into the ring to try and stop the Indian captain.

The head-to-head also works in favor of the leggie, who has accounted for Kaur's wicket thrice in 29 deliveries in T20Is. Having conceded just 20 runs along the way, she has managed to keep the Indian skipper quiet and will look to do the same on Wednesday in Cape Town.

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Which of these player battles are you most looking forward to in the T20 World Cup clash between India and West Indies? Let us know in the comments section below!

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