Women's T20 Challenge | New skipper Deepti Sharma backs Velocity to play the final

Indian all-rounder Deepti Sharma is all set to fill in big shoes in the 2022 edition of the Women's T20 Challenge. In the absence of Mithali Raj, Sharma has been handed the responsibility of leading the Velocity franchise. However, the 24-year-old only has a little experience in leadership. 

In February, she donned the vice-captain hat for India during the ODI series against New Zealand. Though Deepti will be leading Velocity for the first time, she is quite confident about herself and the squad. 

The all-rounder is almost certain of seeing her team as one of the finalists in the T20 Challenge at the MCA Stadium in Pune. The Women's T20 extravaganza will run from May 23 to May 28 among three teams, namely Velocity, Trailblazers, and Supernovas. 

"The thing I am looking to gain from the tournament is to put in my best efforts in all three departments of the game. As a captain, I want to take all players along with me, and playing a final on a platform like this is a huge thing as a leader. So what I think of right now is to play the final of the tournament," Deepti Sharma said in a press conference ahead of the tournament. 

Further, the new-appointed skipper hinted about her batting position in the tournament. Deepti revealed that following the conclusion of the T20 World Cup, she has worked on her power-hitting abilities. As a result, the batter is hopeful of a good run in the competition with the bat. 

"After World Cup, I have worked a bit on my power hitting with coaches and worked as well on the inside-out shots. Hopefully, you see me do that (opening). I have opened domestically and before as well (for India). I like to bat in top-order as you get the time and power-play is on too. 

Batting in power-play is something which the batters find a bit easy, which might you get to see (in the tournament)," Deepti added.

The Velocity skipper described the T20 Challenge as a good platform for domestic players to get some solid experience. Sharma believes that rubbing shoulders with the greats of the game help the youngsters in polishing their skills. 

Deepti also labelled Nagaland's Kiran Navgire and Maharashtra's Maya Sonawane and Aarti Kedar as the players to watch out for from the Velocity camp. 

"This is a good opportunity because foreign players also come and the new domestic players who perform well in the domestic circuit. It will be a good opportunity for them to perform as well as get some game time, and the biggest thing is will be to gain from experiences of senior players as well as foreign cricketers, which is very good," the skipper concluded.