ANTIGUA: India dropped star batter Mithali Raj for their Women's World Twenty20 semi-final against England in Antigua on Thursday as captain Harmanpreet Kaur won the toss and chose to bat first.
In a shock decision, the unbeaten Indians have not brought back their all-time record T20 runscorer Raj, instead choosing to retain the same team which defeated Australia in their final group game in Guyana five days earlier.
England also resisted the temptation to alter their side despite going down to the West Indies in a low-scoring encounter in St Lucia last Sunday, their first defeat of the tournament.
The winners will face Australia in the final on Saturday at the same venue after the three-time champions crushed title-holders and hosts West Indies by 71 runs in the first match of the semi-final double-header.
Teams
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Taniya Bhatia (wicketkeeper), Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Veda Krishnamurthy, Dayalan Hemalatha, Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Anuja Patil, Poonam Yadav
England: Heather Knight (captain), Dani Wyatt, Tammy Beaumont, Amy Jones (wicketkeeper), Natalie Sciver, Lauren Winfield, Sophia Dunkley, Anya Shrubsole, Dani Hazell, Sophie Ecclestone, Kirstie Gordon