Dubai: Leg-spinner Poonam Yadav was the only Indian to feature in the ICC Women's T20 playing XI of the World Cup, released on Monday.The squad dominated by champions Australia also includes teenage sensation Shafali Verma as the 12th player.
Five players from Australia's victorious are in the team. Defending champions Australia clinched their fifth title with an 85-run victory over first-time finalists India on Sunday in Melbourne.Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney did damage aplenty with the bat and the two reprise their roles as openers in the final XI.
They're joined by fast bowler Megan Schutt, who took four wickets in the final against India to finish as leading wicket-taker with 13, and left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen.There is also a spot for captain Meg Lanning, who led Australia from the front both with the bat and in the field to guide her country to a fifth Women's T20 World Cup title.
The side was pulled together by a selection panel featuring commentators and former international players Ian Bishop, Anjum Chopra and Lisa Sthalekar, journalist Raf Nicholson and ICC representative Holly Colvin, the ICC's website said in a statement.
India's leading T20I wicket-taker Poonam Yadav had Australia in knots in a dramatic opening game of the tournament. She took four for 19 in the opener and didn't look back, bagging three against Bangladesh before rounding off with wickets in each match.
On the other hand, teenage sensation Shafali Verma broke record after record at the top of India's order. The 16-year-old scored 163 runs coming at a jaw-dropping strike rate of 158.25.(UNI)