LISTICLE
Follow UsWhen a tournament begins, almost every fan mentally picks their potential top performer from every team, who could be the lynchpin for their sides. They need not be be the best player of the side, but the role they play in the side is clutch. More often than not, they are banked upon as ‘X factors’ to always perform for the team.
With the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup starting on October 3, here are Cricket.com’s X factors for each of the 10 teams participating in the tournament.
Since the last T20 World Cup in South Africa, the Indian wicketkeeper batter has scored 843 runs at an average of 29.06 and a strike rate of 146.8—fifth-best in the world!
In a batting line up that boasts of Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Jemimah Rodrigues, Ghosh stands out for her immense six-hitting ability and is among the best middle-order batters in the world currently.
With quality at the top, Ghosh would be responsible for uplifting India’s totals by 10-20 runs by finishing well. In a tournament being played in spin-friendly conditions, her quick runs will be gold dust for the Women In Blue.
The brilliant youngster from Orange, New South Wales, began her T20I career as a top-order batter. However, with the likes of Alyssa Healy, Beth Mooney, Tahlia McGrath, Ellyse Perry and Ash Gardner batting in the top five for the Aussies, Litchfield had to squeeze herself in as a finisher, batting at five or six.
It is a testament to her quality that despite the new challenge, she has a strike rate of 160.4 and an insane average of 51. For comparison, Grace Harris is the only middle-order batter with a higher strike rate in T20Is since the last T20I World Cup (172.5). However, she averages 23 runs/dismissal less than Litchfield in that position. As a result, Australia have one of their best batters coming down the order and impacting results immensely.
Litchfield could be the Orion this World Cup in a team full of bright constellations.
Capsey has been right at the centre of the success of the Women’s Hundred in her short career, so far. From starting off as a teenager and showing her elite hitting skills, she has now amassed 672 T20I runs for England at a strike rate of 121.96 and has bowled her wily off spin at an average of 24.40.
With the conditions in UAE favouring spinners, she can play the role of a match-winning all-rounder for England, allowing them to not only rotate their spinners but also try different bowling combinations. Moreover, her big-hitting prowess will be needed at the top as well.
In what has been a horrendous year for New Zealand cricket (just one win in 13 T20Is), only one White Fern has stood out - Amelia Kerr. Not only is she the highest run-getter for her team (38.52 average), she is also the leading wicket-taker with 38 scalps at an economy of 7.
New Zealand is in the group of death along with India, Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and things are looking dire for them in UAE. However, if they stand a chance to compete strongly in the group and trouble India and Australia’s qualifying chances, Kerr would have to perform as brilliantly as all have become accustomed to.
Captain, batter, bowler, leader, inspiration — Kathryn Bryce is all this and much more for Scottish cricket at just 26 years of age.
She’s the key player in both the batting and bowling departments for the Scotland. Her booming inswingers would be extremely crucial for the Scots, as their spin attack is a bit inexperienced apart from Abtaha Maqsood.
Meanwhile, her batting average of 39.90 is yet another sign that her side has relied heavily on her scoring runs. Along with her sister Sarah Bryce, she would be one of the most important wickets for Scotland.
Women’s T20 cricket is a realm dominated by spinners. They are elites, and that’s why nine out of the top 10 bowlers in the ICC Women’s T20I bowling rankings are spinners. Interestingly, only two are left-arm spinners (Sadia at 3rd and Nashra Sandhu at 8th), and both are Pakistanis.
Pakistan would be chuffed by her picking 24 wickets in just 15 innings this year at an average of 14.4 and an economy of just 5.9. She headlines, arguably, one of the strongest spin attacks this World Cup.
By Sadia bowling across all the three phases and combined with Nashra's left-arm orthodox and Tuba Hassan’s leg spin, the trio can turn the tide for Pakistan in this tournament if their batters manage to hold the fort.
Rabeya has been an absolute revelation for Bangladesh. Her rise as a leg spinner is even more spectacular given the fact that her country has been a factory of finger spinners.
After graduating successfully from the under-19 side, she has picked up 31 wickets for the Tigresses at an average of just 15.29 and economy of 5.15. More noteworthy are her 12 wickets in just nine innings against India, coming at just 14 runs apiece.
She not only provides variety to the Bangladesh attack, but a wicket-taking option as well. Considering that Bangladesh are in Group B where the other sides are non-Asian, their spin attack with Rabeya can do serious damage to England, Scotland, South Africa and West Indies.
Harshitha Samarawickrama - Sri Lanka
It’s hard to name anyone other than Chamari Athapaththu while discussing potential key players for Sri Lanka, however, it’s important to highlight the role of her number two here.
Samarawickrama has not only been stellar with the bat but has also bore responsibilities of finishing crucial games successfully. The historic Asia Cup victory for the Lankan women is a testament to that. Samarawickrama laid out a chasing masterpiece against India, scoring 69 off just 51 deliveries and taking Sri Lanka home after Athapaththu fell earlier.
With their skipper playing their last World Cup in all probability, it’s time that Samarawickrama takes over for good.
What else is there to talk about Kapp that hasn’t been said? Probably, alongside Ellyse Perry, she’s the only all-rounder in the World who’ll make to any side on the basis of either of her skills.
Sample this - She has been dismissed for under 25 just once in her last seven T20 innings and was not out in four of those, with her numbers reading 188 runs at an average of 62.66 and a strike rate of 132.4. In bowling, no one has taken more wickets than Kapp (13) in the last three months.
It’s unreal. It’s just Kapp. Yet again, she’ll be the most crucial player for her team, both with the bat and the ball.
The ‘World Boss’ is back in the West Indian maroon, and oh boy, do the West Indies need her!
The West Indian team revolves around Hayley Mathews. She is not only the team’s best batter, but has been leading her side with her off-spin as well. Due to the lack of fire power in the batting department, the Caribbean women haven’t really been up to mark ever since winning the 2016 T20I World Cup.
Dottin would have the opportunity to change that narrative. Her power-hitting would be highly crucial for her side, and so would be her pace bowling, especially at the death, as she is really good at bowling yorkers.
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