India U19 captain Niki recalls advice by Shafali Varma ahead of 2025 T20 World Cup

Shafali Verma. Getty images

India's U19 captain Niki Prasad expressed happiness at getting a chance to lead the team during the ICC Women's U19 T20 World Cup and also recalled advice from senior Indian batter Shafali Varma, who led Women in Blue to the title in inaugural edition in 2023.

The tournament will be starting from Saturday onwards in Malaysia and will go on till February 2 this year. India secured the inaugural title back in 2023 under the captaincy of Shafali Varma, beating England in the final.

In a video posted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Niki expressed that she feels thankful for the opportunity to lead the team as many players dream of playing and captaining India. She also recalled that Shafali advice the team to "go out and enjoy" as they start their campaign against West Indies from Sunday at Bayuemas Oval, Pandamaran.

Speaking in the video, Niki said, "Representing the country is a matter of highest pride for us as a cricketer. And now since we have gotten this opportunity, I think we are going to go out there and give our best and defend the title. It is very special for me, because a lot of players out there are dreaming to play for India. And I have not just got the opportunity to play for the country but also to lead the Indian side."

"All of us are really excited to be playing the ICC World Cup. And we are all very motivated and very excited to go out there and show what we can do. I got to speak with the captain who won last time. I got to speak to Shefali Varma and one piece of advice she gave me was to just go out there and have fun and enjoy. We are definitely looking forward to carrying the tradition of winning and we want to create this legacy of winning ICC trophies," she added.

16 teams will compete in 41 matches across three host cities in Malaysia - Johor, Sarawak, and Selangor. These teams are divided into four groups of four teams each. India is in Group A with hosts Malaysia, Sri Lanka and West Indies.

The knockout stage will start from the first semifinal on January 31 and the final will take place on February 2 at Bayuemas Oval, Pandamaran. The four best teams out of the Super Six will make it to the semifinals.

Squad: Niki Prasad (Captain), Sanika Chalke (Vice-captain), G Trisha, Kamalini G (WK), Bhavika Ahire (WK), Ishwari Awasare, Mithila Vinod, Joshitha VJ, Sonam Yadav, Parunika Sisodiya, Kesari Drithi, Aayushi Shukla, Anandita Kishor, MD Shabnam, Vaishnavi S

Standby players: Nandhana S, Ira J, Anadi T.

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