The Indian women’s cricket team will return to competitive international action when they take on South Africa in 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is starting March 7 in Lucknow.

The BCCI has announced two separate squads for ODIs and T20Is with Mithali Raj named as the captain of the 50-over squad while Harmanpreet Kaur will lead the T20I team against the Proteas Women. All matches will be played at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana International Stadium in Lucknow.

There were also major talking points as Shikha Pandey, Veda Krishnamurthy, Ekta Bisht and Taniya Bhatia were dropped from both the squads.

Interestingly, the Indian women’s cricket team hasn’t played any competitive cricket since the final of the Women's T20 World Cup in Melbourne on March 8 last year.

The Indian players, however, did feature in the four-match Women's T20 Challenge which was held alongside the Indian T20 League play-offs in the UAE.

On the other hand, Sune Luus will lead the South Africa women's cricket team that will tour India for the limited-over series with regular captain Dane van Niekerk ruled out due to injury. The South Africans have named an unchanged 17-member squad to the one that played against Pakistan in Durban.

The team will quarantine for six days, followed by a two-day training session before their first ODI on Sunday, March 7 at the Ekana Stadium.

India vs South Africa ODI and T20I squads

India women's squad for ODI series: Mithali Raj (captain), Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Punam Raut, Priya Punia, Yastika Bhatia, Harmanpreet Kaur (vice-captain), D. Hemalatha, Deepti Sharma, Sushma Verma (wicket-keeper), Swetha Verma (wicket-keeper), Radha Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Jhulan Goswami, Mansi Joshi, Poonam Yadav, C. Prathyusha, Monica Patel

India women's T20I squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, Harleen Deol, Sushma Verma (wicket-keeper), Nuzhat Parveen (wicket-keeper), Ayushi Soni, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Mansi Joshi, Monica Patel, C. Prathyusha, Simran Dil Bahadur

South Africa women’s squad for ODIs and T20Is: Sune Luus (captain), Ayabonga Khaka, Shabnim Ismail, Laura Wolvaardt, Trisha Chetty (wicket-keeper), Sinalo Jafta (wicket-keeper), Tasmin Britz (wicket-keeper), Marizanne Kapp, Nondumiso Shangase, Lizelle Lee (wicket-keeper), Anneke Bosch, Faye Tunnicliffe (wicket-keeper), Nonkululeko Mlaba, Mignon du Preez (wicket-keeper), Nadine de Klerk, Lara Goodall, Tumi Sekhukhune

India women vs South Africa women, schedule, fixtures and live match times

All times are in Indian Standard Time (IST)

India Women vs South Africa Women ODI series 

Sunday, March 7 - 1st ODI - 9:30 AM IST

Tuesday, March 9 - 2nd ODI - 9:30 AM IST

Friday, March 12 - 3rd ODI - 9:30 AM IST

Sunday, March 14 - 4th ODI - 9:30 AM IST

Wednesday, March 17 - 5th ODI - 9:30 AM IST

India Women vs South Africa Women T20I series

Saturday, March 20 - 1st T20I - 7:00 PM IST

Sunday, March 21 - 2nd T20I - 7:00 PM IST

Tuesday, March 23 - 3rd T20I - 7:00 PM IST

Where to watch India Women vs South Africa Women ODI series live?  

The India Women vs South Africa Women ODI series will be telecast live on Star Sports 2 and Star Sports 2 HD TV channels in India. The T20I series will be broadcast on the same channels.

Live streaming of the India Women vs South Africa Women ODI and T20I series will be available on the Disney+ Hotstar platform.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Punit Paranjpe

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Mithali RajHarmanpreet Kaur