Former India skipper Mithali Raj has called for a change of guard in the national women’s team. Raj believes Smriti Mandhana should have been handed the reins “two‑three years back,” but insists it is still not too late. She feels Mandhana deserves charge of the ODI and Test sides, while a younger player should lead in T20Is.
Her comments follow Mandhana’s recent interview with the Times of India, where the vice‑captain expressed her readiness to step up if asked.
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“I at least thought Smriti would lead the ODI format two‑three years back,” Raj was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. “But now also, with the vast experience that she has, at least the one‑day and Test format should be given to her and perhaps the T20 to someone younger.”
Raj, now a broadcaster, has backed Shafali Verma for the T20I role, citing her success as U19 captain when she led India to the inaugural ICC Women’s U19 World Cup title in 2023.
“I think Shafali. Her format is T20Is. And she has led the Under‑19 World Cup side [to a title win in 2023]. Why not Shafali? Jemi [Rodrigues] too of course, yes. She has led [Delhi Capitals] in the WPL. But I do believe that whoever they pick, they need to give them some time to settle. Because all of us got time to settle in our role as a leader.”
Mandhana’s captaincy record in WPL and for India
Mandhana, meanwhile, has already built an impressive leadership résumé. She has won two Women’s Premier League titles with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, becoming only the second player after Harmanpreet Kaur to achieve the feat. Across 35 WPL matches as captain, she has 18 wins and 17 losses, a win percentage of 51.43. In internationals, she boasts four wins in as many ODIs as captain, and 11 victories in 18 T20Is, giving her a strong win rate of 64.71%.
