Australia’s Ashleigh Gardner believes that India will emerge as a force to reckon with in the next five to ten years.
Speaking as quoted by India Today, Gardner said, “India’s going to be one of those teams in the next five to ten years that are going to be very hard to beat. It’s an exciting prospect, it’s scary as an Australian, but I guess knowing that the game is growing so quickly and rapidly over here, it’s fantastic to see.”
India recently defeated Australia in the semi-final of the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup, thanks to a brilliant century by Jemimah Rodrigues. They eventually went on to lift the World Cup for the first time, defeating South Africa by 52 runs in the final.
Despite that loss, the Australian all-rounder still believes her team remains the best in the world.
“I’ve said in the media since that World Cup (and) I’m not denying that I still think we’re the best team in the world. World Cups showcase your win in those high-pressure moments. If we played any team ten times in a row, I would say that we’re probably going to win eight or nine times. That might sound really cocky, but I just believe that we are the best team in the world still. It was a pretty hard defeat playing against a very good side. We know how damaging India can be and we got challenged throughout,” she said.
Gardner will now be in action in the upcoming Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026, which begins on January 9. She will lead Gujarat Giants once again.
Following the completion of the WPL, the India Women’s team are scheduled to tour Australia for a multi-format series. The tour will include three T20Is, three ODIs, and a pink-ball Test, to be played between February 15 and March 9.
Also read- WPL 2026: Marizanne Kapp backs Jemimah Rodrigues as future India captain
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