Written by Megan Taylor, sports reporter covering international sports since 2020
The Indian women's cricket team is facing significant Deepti Sharma form concerns as they prepare for a must win third T20I against South Africa at the Wanderers. Despite being named Wisden's leading female player of 2025, the star all-rounder has struggled in the current series, contributing only three runs and taking a single wicket across recent fixtures. With the T20 World Cup less than two months away, India must address these performance dips to avoid a series defeat against a clinical Proteas side.
South Africa currently leads the multi-format series 2-0 after dominant displays in Durban that exploited gaps in the visitors' bowling attack. Nathan McSweeney century headlines county cricket as Australians shine in England
Coaching Staff Backs Star All-Rounder
Bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi remains confident that the veteran will find her rhythm before the global tournament begins. "Deepti is a champion player. We all know that. One or two games or three games doesn't justify the kind of talent she has," Salvi stated ahead of the Johannesburg clash.
He noted that she is working hard in camp on her fitness and specific target bowling drills to regain her elite edge. "It's only a matter of a few instances where probably she just strikes and she comes back shining," he added.
Tactical Adjustments and Middle Order Struggles
The Indian team management is currently rotating seamers like Kashvee Gautam and Kranti Gaud to build a diverse "option bank" for the World Cup. However, this experimentation has resulted in a lack of early wickets, with South Africa's top order frequently finding boundaries during the powerplay.
According to official ICC Women's Cricket data, India’s inability to capitalize on strong starts has been a recurring theme in this series. After reaching 100 runs within 12 overs in both matches, the middle order suffered collapses that prevented them from setting competitive totals.