India’s impressive start to the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 continued on Wednesday as they produced another dominant display to strengthen their position in Group A. The Women in Blue followed it up with another all-round performance against the Netherlands at Headingley.
The foundation of India’s victory was laid by openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma, who gave the team a flying start at the top of the order.
Their aggressive approach allowed India to seize control early and build momentum throughout the innings. The strong platform eventually helped India post 209/5, their highest-ever total in Women’s T20 World Cup history.
Smriti Mandhana collected her second consecutive Player of the Match award after another impressive half-century, but the left-hander insisted there is still room for improvement in her batting.
Mandhana revealed that India spent considerable time preparing for the Netherlands, despite not having much experience against them.
“I think it was a good batting wicket for sure. I mean, whenever we have come to Leeds, I’ve played a few matches here in the Hundred, but it’s always been a good batting wicket and a quick outfield. Again, I mean, the Netherlands did a really good job today.”
“Well, of course, it’s like unknown territory for all of us. We’ve not seen a lot of them. So we had to go through a lot of videos in terms of how they bowl and how we will be approaching the game. One thing we always pride ourselves on is that we don’t take any team differently because it’s their first time or anything. I just thought they put up a really good fight. They fielded really well, and for us it was just about focusing and doing the job for the team.”
India already looking ahead
While pleased with the result, Mandhana made it clear that India are already focused on maintaining standards as they prepare for tougher opponents later in the tournament.
“Again, I wouldn’t say I was middling the ball the way I would still like to. I’m still a work in progress. But really happy with the way Shafali batted today. We had a good partnership, and it was good to have her back among the runs. Again, I mean, Sree Charani bowled extremely well. So for me, it’s just about doing the right things, waking up every day, doing the right things, and then seeing how the match goes.“
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur credited the opening pair for putting the Netherlands under pressure from the beginning.
“I think we were really good with the bat. It wasn’t that easy a wicket, but Smriti and Shafali gave us a great platform. She (Shafali) is always ready with the ball whenever the team needs it. She keeps giving us breakthroughs, and she can go on to be a great all-rounder,” Harmanpreet said after the match.
With two wins from two matches and several players already finding form, India have placed themselves in a strong position as they continue their pursuit of the Women’s T20 World Cup title.
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