WPL 2026 to boost India Women's T20 World Cup hopes: Irfan Pathan

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 6 (ANI): Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan highlighted how the upcoming Women's Premier League (WPL) 2026 season will help the 'Women in Blue' to boost their chances at this year's ICC T20 World Cup.

Indian women's cricket team players will be coming into the WPL tournament on the back of a famous ODI World Cup win in 2025, their maiden World Championship title. The Women in Blue will aim to replicate their ODI World Cup performance at the 2026 T20 World Cup, set to get underway from June 12 in England and Wales.
Speaking on the JioStar show 'Follow The Blues', Irfan Pathan noted that having the WPL just before the T20 World Cup helps players enter the tournament in good form and gives Indian cricketers crucial match time and confidence going into the marquee T20 event later in the year.
"Girls now play a lot more cricket, and that depth gives the team plenty of options, especially if injuries crop up, because you have ready-made backups. This current pool of players is something you simply didn't see ten years ago. The biggest advantage is that WPL comes right before the World Cup, so they go in with both game time and confidence. Winning a World Cup in one format and then shifting to another is not a big hurdle anymore, particularly with how much their power game has improved. If they adapt quickly to conditions in England, it really should not be very difficult for them," Pathan said.
India Women defeated Australia in the 2025 ODI World Cup semifinal in a high-scoring thriller, eliminating the seven-time World Champions from the tournament, before eventually beating South Africa to clinch their maiden World Cup trophy.
Former Indian cricketer Varun Aaron said India's ODI World Cup win, especially beating Australia, has broken a long-standing mental barrier and boosted the team's belief. With growing momentum, fan support, and strong backing from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), he feels the women's team now has a strong chance to win their first T20 World Cup, while noting that Australia will be eager to bounce back.
"Australia used to be India's bogey team, but once the women went past them in that second final and then went on to win the title, it felt like a barrier had truly been broken. Now, with that hurdle crossed, this group will feel they can achieve anything. The momentum around the Indian women's team, the support from fans, and the backing from BCCI all give them a great chance to finally win a T20 World Cup, though Australia will definitely be hungry for revenge," Varun Aaron said on JioStar. (ANI)