India’s Women’s Selection Committee has announced separate squads for the India A tour of England, running from June 20 to July 4, 2026. Anushka Sharma has been named captain of the T20 side, with Vrinda Dinesh as vice-captain. Harleen Deol will lead the ODI squad, with Pratika Rawal serving as her deputy. The tour features three T20Is followed by three one-day matches against England A across four venues in England.
The two captaincy appointments carry different stories, one signals a fast-tracked entry into leadership, the other a platform to push back toward the senior setup.
Anushka Sharma’s Rapid Rise to the Captaincy
Anushka Sharma made her senior international debut for India during the tour of South Africa, a debut that came recently enough that her appointment as T20 captain of India A is being read as a significant accelerator in her development pathway. The selectors have moved quickly, giving her leadership responsibility before she has accumulated many senior appearances. That kind of early captaincy for an A-side typically signals that the board sees long-term potential in the role, not just the player.
Vrinda Dinesh, named vice-captain for the T20 leg, brings experience in the format and provides a steady hand alongside the younger captain. G. Kamalini has been named as wicketkeeper for the T20 side and also features in the ODI squad, making her one of the few players bridging both formats across the tour.
Harleen Deol’s Chance to Reassert Herself
Harleen Deol’s position in the India A setup tells a different story. She missed out on India’s Women’s T20 World Cup squad, a notable omission for a player of her experience, and the ODI captaincy for this England tour is both a recognition of her standing and an opportunity to reassert her case for senior selection. Pratika Rawal, her vice-captain, is a player the selectors are developing for the longer formats, and the ODI combination suggests the board is testing a leadership pair that could grow together.
Deol’s record in women’s cricket across multiple formats gives her the profile to lead the side without any ambiguity. The question heading into this tour is whether her form and leadership on the field translate into a recall to the senior ODI setup in the months that follow.
India A Squads and Tour Schedule
| Detail | T20 Squad | ODI Squad |
| Captain | Anushka Sharma | Harleen Deol |
| Vice-Captain | Vrinda Dinesh | Pratika Rawal |
| Wicketkeeper | G. Kamalini | G. Kamalini / Uma Chetry |
| First Match | June 20 (Northampton) | June 28 (Hove) |
| Second Match | June 23 (Northampton) | July 1 (Taunton) |
| Third Match | June 25 (Chelmsford) | July 4 (Taunton) |
Players Worth Watching on the Tour
Several selections stand out beyond the captaincy announcements. Jintimani Kalita earns her first call-up to both squads, a debut across two formats in one announcement, which reflects strong domestic performances that caught the selectors’ attention.
Tanisha Singh is a new face in the ODI squad, while Purvaja Verlekar gets her first T20 call-up. Vaishnavi Sharma, who played senior cricket for India at the age of just sixteen and was omitted from the T20 World Cup squad, returns through the A pathway alongside familiar names such as Simran Bahadur, Minnu Mani, and Shweta Sehrawat in the T20 setup.
The Broader Context: A Shadow Tour Alongside the Senior Side
The India A tour of England runs parallel to the senior India women’s team participating in the Women’s T20 World Cup in England and Wales, which takes place across June and July 2026. This positioning makes the A tour function as both a development exercise and a monitoring exercise, giving selectors a live look at players who were not part of the World Cup squad while the senior side is in action at the same time in the same country.
For players like Vaishnavi Sharma and Harleen Deol, the England environment during a World Cup window creates additional visibility. How they perform on the A tour, against England A, will be tracked closely by selectors who are simultaneously watching the senior team navigate the tournament.
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