Women’s T20 World Cup: Deepti Sharma on brink of history as India star chases all-time bowling record vs Bangladesh

NEW DELHI: India all-rounder Deepti Sharma is on the verge of rewriting cricket history as she prepares for India’s Group A match against Bangladesh in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 on Thursday.The 28-year-old off-spinner is currently tied with former India speed legend Jhulan Goswami as the leading wicket-taker in women’s international cricket, with both claiming 355 wickets. A single wicket against Bangladesh sees Deepti move past Goswami to remain alone at the top of the all-time list.

One wicket away from history: Deepti’s record chase

Deepti has already put up an excellent campaign in the tournament. She started with a brilliant five-wicket haul against Pakistan, setting the tone for India’s early dominance. He followed it up with figures of 1/26 against the Netherlands, a spell that helped her equal Jhulan’s long-standing record.However, India lost their previous match against South Africa without a wicket, where the Proteas handed Harmanpreet Kaur’s side a six-wicket defeat. Despite this setback, Deepti remains India’s most reliable bowling option heading into the crucial encounter.Across formats, her numbers underline her dominance. Deepti is already India’s leading wicket-taker in T20 Internationals and the highest wicket-taker worldwide in the format, with 167 wickets from 147 matches. In ODIs, he has 166 wickets from 124 matches, second only to Jhulan Goswami’s 255 for India. In Tests, she took 22 wickets in just six appearances.Behind Deepti and Jhulan on the all-time list are England’s Katherine Sciver-Brunt (335), Australia’s Ellyse Perry (332), Sophie Ecclestone (327) and South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail (318), highlighting the elite company she has to overcome.

Indian middle-order fears ahead of Bangladesh clash

While Deepti’s milestone dominates the limelight, India enter the match with tactical concerns. Strong starts from Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma consistently provided India with the initial momentum, but the middle order struggled to convert the platforms into overall winning matches.Failure to capitalize in the middle lanes repeatedly left finishers Richa Ghosh and Deepti Sharma with too much to do in limited time. India’s defeat to South Africa also exposed lapses in the fielding after they reduced the opposition to 25 for 2.Bangladesh, meanwhile, arrive confident after wins over Pakistan and the Netherlands, built on disciplined team performances rather than individual brilliance.For India, a win would secure their place in the semi-finals and set up a high-profile clash with Australia. Another upset would rock Group A for Bangladesh.