India hosting it is pretty special – Smriti Mandhana on first ICC Women’s Champions Trophy

Women’s cricket will enter a new era in February 2027 as the first women’s Champions Trophy will be played in India. The tournament will feature a round-robin format where each team plays every other team once. The top two teams will then qualify for the grand finale.

India captain, Smriti Mandhana opened up about the upcoming Champions Trophy, slated to begin from 14th February. Mandhana discussed how hosting the tournament in India makes it very special while also highlighting how tough the format can be and how to brave it.

In a video posted by the ICC, Mandhana said about the tournament, “It’s going to be very exciting firstly to have a Champion’s Trophy. It’s the first time in women’s cricket. India hosting it is pretty special. So really looking forward to it.”

Shedding light on the format's challenges, Mandhana added, “It’s a different format altogether. We play each team once and then the top two qualifies for the final. You have to be prepared for anything and everything with the kind of competition the top six teams have and I think it’s pretty even with all the teams now. So it’s going to be an exciting competition.”

She concluded by saying, “You have to play every match as your best match. Well I think being Indian, I cannot deny that there’s no better place to play cricket than India, especially with crowds coming in. So it will be pretty exciting to have T20 cricket because we’ve seen crowds turn up in huge numbers.”