Teenage sensation Shabnam Shakil gets maiden call-up for India vs South Africa series

Teenage pace sensation Shabnam Shakil has been handed her maiden call-up to the Indian women’s cricket team for the ongoing multi-format series against South Africa at home on Thursday, June 20. Initially, Shakil was overlooked for the home series against South Africa.

However, the Indian Women’s Selection Committee reconsidered their decision and handed the maiden call-up to the Under-19 World Cup winner after the first two T20Is against the South African women’s cricket team in Bengaluru. Shakil, known for her ability to trouble top-order batters, has quickly risen through the ranks since her Under-19 World Cup success.

Shabnam Shakil earns maiden India call-up for South Africa Series

They considered Shakil on the back of her standout performances in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024, where she represented the Gujarat Giants. Shakil picked up four wickets in four WPL 2024 matches at an economy of 7 and dismissed the likes of Nat Sciver-Brunt, Alyssa Healy, and Chamari Athapaththu at just 16 years of age.

This performance displayed her potential to thrive on the international stage and brought her into the limelight. Meanwhile, Shakil's inclusion is seen as a strategic move to manage the workload of India's frontline pacers.

With Pooja Vastrakar and Renuka Thakur leading the new-ball attack in the ongoing ODI series, Shakil's addition adds depth and versatility to the squad. She has been named in the ODI, Test, and T20I squads, with only the ODI match remaining of the home series against South Africa Women on June 23.

Shabnam Shakil set for India debut across the formats

Both teams will play a one-off test on June 28, followed by a three-match T20I series on July 5. The Indian team is leading the ODI series 2-0 against the tourists. Shakil was recently in Bengaluru. She initially participated in a specialized camp for pacers ahead of the selection process for India's squads for the ongoing multi-format series against South Africa.

Later, she featured in the Board President's XI team that faced the tourists in a warm-up match.

The BCCI said in an official media release: “The Women’s Selection Committee on Thursday announced the addition of right-arm pacer Shabnam Shakil to India’s squad for all three formats for the ongoing multi-format IDFC First Bank series against South Africa.”

Here are India's women’s squads for the South Africa Series:

India’s updated ODI squad for the three-match ODI series: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (WK), Uma Chetry (WK), Dayalan Hemalatha, Radha Yadav, Asha Sobhana, Shreyanka Patil, Saika Ishaque, Pooja Vastrakar, Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, Priya Punia, and Shabnam Shakil

India’s updated Test squad for the one-off Test: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Shubha Satheesh, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (WK), Uma Chetry (WK), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Saika Ishaque, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Meghna Singh, Priya Punia, and Shabnam Shakil

India’s updated squad for the three-match T20I series: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Dayalan Hemalatha, Uma Chetry (WK), Richa Ghosh (WK), Jemimah Rodrigues, Sajana Sajeevan, Deepti Sharma, Shreyanka Patil, Radha Yadav, Amanjot Kaur, Asha Sobhana, Pooja Vastrakar, Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, and Shabnam Shakil

Standby: Saika Ishaque