Dubai: The 10th Women’s Asia Cup has begun in Dubai, with the focus now turning to the tournament’s biggest contenders. Thailand opened their campaign with a six-run win over Hong Kong, but the result was hardly an upset. For seven-time champions India, the real test begins on August 30 against Thailand. Yet this Asia Cup is about more than adding another title to India’s record. With the Asian Games ahead, India has a bigger task: to build a clear, confident T20 identity and find the game they want to take into the next major challenge.
India’s advantage and their unanswered questions
The rest of the continent will continue to measure itself against India. Harmanpreet Kaur’s team includes Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, Renuka Thakur, Radha Yadav and an increasing number of younger women. However, their popularity has a cost of its own.
Sri Lanka won their first Asia Cup title in 2024, ending India’s lengthy dominance. That outcome went beyond a single upset. It proved that when an opponent successfully attacks their middle overs and prevents the game from settling into India’s preferred rhythm, India’s conventional advantage in experience and depth can be neutralised.
Bangladesh and Pakistan have enough talent to challenge the established order, but Sri Lanka, the reigning champions, are once again led by the fearsome Chamari Athapaththu. As a result, India has numerous challenges. Thailand, on the other hand, enters with increasing confidence following a successful run through the year’s regional competitions. India might, however, be their own greatest obstacle.
The key is in Mandhana and Shafali
Winning the powerplay is still the most straightforward path to Indian supremacy. India has two contrasting weapons at the top in Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma. Shafali can overpower field settings with force, while Mandhana can control them with timing and placement. India’s entire batting system shifts when the two get going. Harmanpreet may enter without having to worry about rebuilding after a quick opening stand. Deepti Sharma adds more depth, while Richa Ghosh may be used as a finisher rather than a repairer.
However, when India loses early wickets, that model is exposed. This scenario is where Jemimah Rodrigues’s absence becomes important. Pratika Rawal has been recruited into the squad to replace Rodrigues, who has been ruled out due to a high-grade right hamstring rupture. This isn’t just a like-for-like swap. Rodrigues provided India with a flexible middle-order presence that could accelerate, absorb pressure and rotate against spin without drastically altering the course of an innings.
Rawal offers India an additional batting option, but rather than just switching players, the team might need to rethink its middle-order plan. That could dictate how India reacts if their chosen powerplay script doesn’t work. Scoring might not be Harmanpreet’s most crucial task. For Harmanpreet Kaur, batting output and tactical command are equally important in this competition.
There are enough individual match-winners in India. They require a leader who can turn that depth into a well-thought-out T20 strategy. This entails knowing when to take calculated chances with the batting order, when to attack with spin and when to protect wickets. The key figure in the equation is Deepti Sharma. Renuka Thakur and Arundhati Reddy provide several seam-bowling options, while Radha Yadav and Sree Charani contribute left-arm diversity.
Whether India will make aggressive use of this variety is the question. Wickets are becoming more important in modern T20 cricket than economy rates alone. Even if a team keeps the opposition’s scoring rate reasonable, it may still lose if it permits partnerships to form. India must disrupt partnerships with their middle-overs onslaught rather than just contain them.
Spin could be a weapon or a trap in Dubai
The Dubai International Stadium is hosting all 15 games, which creates an intriguing tactical scenario. The teams will benefit from quickly picking up on the surface’s behaviour, but familiarity also raises the risk of overconfidence. Conditions can change, especially as the tournament progresses, and a pitch that seems predictable during one game may behave differently in another.
Early indications from the first game suggested that patience, rather than reckless attack, would be needed to make runs. The match between Thailand and Hong Kong was informative. Thailand constructed their innings after losing two early wickets, with Naruemol Chaiwai playing an important role in their recovery. The game brought to light a significant aspect of Dubai: batters may need to plan their innings instead of relying on boundary-hitting.
India should be interested in that. Their best batting lineup is one that can change gears rather than one that runs at full speed all the time.
Sri Lanka has earned the right to be feared
Sri Lanka continues to be India’s greatest obstacle. Athapaththu has the ability to alter a match before a bowling team has made up its mind. Harshitha Samarawickrama offers a different perspective, focusing more on maintaining an innings and taking advantage of opportunities presented by an aggressive partner rather than on destruction.
In the 2024 final, such a combination was vital. Therefore, rather than concentrating only on certain players, India will need to attack Sri Lanka’s batting infrastructure. The apparent goal will be to remove Athapaththu as soon as possible, but limiting the potential for partnerships around her might be just as crucial.
Pakistan is yet another formidable obstacle
The main group-stage match will be India’s encounter with Pakistan on September 5, but Pakistan’s significance goes beyond the rivalry. Muneeba Ali, Gull Feroza and Tuba Hassan offer several attacking options, while Fatima Sana leads a team with growing all-round depth. India’s record of winning 14 of their 17 Twenty20 International matches against Pakistan offers little tactical safety in a format where a single explosive powerplay can change the outcome of a match.
A competition inside a competition
August 30 is India’s first game, against Thailand. On September 3 and 5, respectively, they will play Hong Kong, China, and Pakistan. It seems like a suitable progression on paper. In actuality, it is a perfect test for a squad that is still developing its identity.
Thailand ought to permit India to form combinations. Hong Kong ought to provide an additional chance to evaluate the middle order. After that, Pakistan will show whether those changes hold up against a more formidable foe. There is no more room for exploration after that. The semi-finals start on September 10 and 11, and the final is scheduled for September 13.
The competition is important for another reason. The Asia Cup will serve as India’s first competitive test before another significant continental assignment when the Asian Games get underway in Aichi-Nagoya later in September. Dubai serves as a link between the current goal and the next, since India enters those Games as the reigning champions.
India has the stars. They have the depth. The past is theirs. They now need to be precise. In the Asia Cup, Thailand has taken the lead. India will take the stage on Sunday. For seven-time champions vying for their eighth title, the real question is not whether they can win Asia once more. The question is whether they can find the version of themselves they want to take into the next major challenge.
