WATCH: India Women’s Team Arrives in Sri Lanka for Asia Cup 2024

Colombo: The Indian women’s cricket team landed in Sri Lanka on Wednesday ahead of the Women’s Asia Cup 2024, which kicks off on Friday.

As the reigning champions, India aim to secure a record-extending eighth title, starting with a high-stakes match against arch-rivals Pakistan in Dambulla on Friday.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shared a video capturing the team’s journey from Chennai to Dambulla, highlighting the camaraderie among players like Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Renuka Singh, Shreyanka Patil, and captain Harmanpreet Kaur. “A journey filled with smiles and banter from Chennai to Dambulla! All set for #WomensAsiaCup2024 #TeamIndia | #ACC,” tweeted BCCI Women.

✈️ A journey filled with smiles and banter from Chennai to Dambulla! 🇱🇰

All set for #WomensAsiaCup2024 😎#TeamIndia | #ACC pic.twitter.com/FGl3HVCNbW

— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) July 17, 2024

The 15-match tournament features top teams from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, alongside Malaysia, UAE, Thailand, and Nepal. Group A consists of Pakistan, India, Nepal, and UAE, while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand, and Malaysia form Group B. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals on July 26, with the final set for July 28 in Dambulla.

India enters the competition following recent successes, including a clean sweep against South Africa in ODIs and a drawn T20I series. They also dominated Bangladesh 5-0 in T20Is earlier this year.

This tournament serves as crucial preparation for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh later this year, where India seeks its first major ICC women’s trophy.