CHENNAI: With the gruelling cricket schedule ahead in the lead up to the 2023 T20 World Cup in South Africa, India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana has said she might consider whether or not to take part in the upcoming edition of the Women's Big Bash League.
Mandhana, who was a part of Sydney Thunder in the last edition of WBBL, was expected to be among the top picks for this year as well. While Harmanpreet Kaur (Melbourne Renegades), Jemimah Rodrigues (Melbourne Stars), and Pooja Vastrakar (Brisbane Heat) have already been named as overseas picks, the southpaw's name was yet to be confirmed.
When asked about it ahead of the second T20I against England, the 26-year-old said that she might consider pulling out of the tournament, considering the schedule India have. "I think more than the mental part, it's about managing a little bit of physical part. Definitely, I'll be thinking about pulling out of WBBL because I don't want to miss out on playing for India or having any niggles when I play for India because I want to give my 100% when I play international cricket," she said in the pre-match press conference on Monday.
Mandhana has been on the road since the ODI World Cup — Senior T20 league, Sri Lanka tour, Commonwealth Games, The Hundred and the ongoing England tour. The Asia Cup is starting on October 1, followed by the senior T20 league and the T20I series against Australia at home in December before leaving for South Africa, where they will play a tri-series against the hosts and West Indies before the World Cup. With the WBBL also scheduled to be played in October-November, it could be another six months of non-stop cricket away from home if she travels to Australia.
She was her candid self when asked about the tight schedule India women have at the moment, especially after not playing a single international game for a year after the 2020 T20 World Cup final. "I just try to tell myself that because of Covid we haven't really played a lot of cricket and we really hoped that we would come back and start playing cricket. And now I can't be complaining that we have a lot of cricket on the platter."
"As a woman player, we always wanted this sort of schedule for us. I'm really happy to be playing so much cricket and I've had my family here in England. My mom is here and she was here for the Hundred as well. So that also helps to be in a good mindset and the teammates have been just amazing. It feels like we're a family together."
India vs England, 2nd T20I Live on Sony Sports Network from 11.30 PM