3 big names who missed out on India's squad for 2025 Women's World Cup ft. Shafali Verma

India recently announced their squad for the 2025 Women's World Cup. Although there's a lot of uncertainty regarding the venues and tickets for the tournament, the hosts didn't have much doubt while selecting their 15-member contingent.

Harmanpreet Kaur will lead India, while Smriti Mandhana will serve as her deputy. Renuka Singh Thakur has been selected despite having endured a long spell on the sidelines, while the relatively inexperienced trio of Pratika Rawal, Sree Charani and Kranti Goud have been rightly picked.

India’s squad for ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, Richa Ghosh (wk), Kranti Gaud, Amanjot Kaur, Radha Yadav, Sree Charani, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Sneh Rana.

At the same time, however, there were a few notable exclusions that raised eyebrows. While all of them were justified, the absence of these names from the standbys as well was a touch strange.

On that note, here are three big names who missed out on India's squad for the 2025 Women's World Cup.

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#3 Asha Sobhana

India v New Zealand - ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024 - Source: Getty

Asha Sobhana has played only two ODIs, so it wasn't a surprise as such that she missed out on the squad for the 2025 Women's World Cup. She missed the 2025 Women's Premier League season with an injury and wasn't in the national team's planning for the marquee tournament.

However, not too long ago, it seemed like Asha would easily become a regular in the 50-over side. The Women in Blue have gone pace-heavy, with Sneh Rana and Sree Charani accompanying Deepti Sharma and Radha Yadav, apart from a host of part-time options. In a home World Cup, having a leg-spinner could've proved vital.

Given the injuries Asha has suffered and her inexperience in the format, though, it's understandable that India didn't go down that route.

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#2 Shafali Verma

England v India - 1st Women's Vitality IT20 - Source: Getty

The biggest headline from India's World Cup squad announcement, Shafali Verma was left out from the 15 and didn't even make the standbys. The 21-year-old has featured in 29 ODIs, with only 644 runs to her name at an average of 23.

Shafali's inconsistency has been a problem for a number of years now, and she hasn't done enough to work on the holes in her game. Pratika Rawal's stability at the top of the order meant that she was never going to be picked in the first-choice playing XI, and the slot of the backup batter in the 15-member squad has gone to the two-faceted Yastika Bhatia.

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#1 Shreyanka Patil

India v Australia - ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024 - Source: Getty

Another player who seemed set to become a staple of India's side across formats, Shreyanka Patil has endured a rough calendar year so far. The talented off-spinner has been troubled by a number of injuries, and like Asha, she missed out on the 2025 Women's Premier League.

Shreyanka had reportedly been cleared by the Centre of Excellence ahead of the Women's World Cup squad announcement, but the selectors perhaps weren't willing to disturb the team's combination. That said, however, her absence from the standbys is worth questioning, given her obvious skillset with the ball.