# Deepti Sharma targets 300-plus as new vice-captain for Zimbabwe ODIs 2026-10-22T23:35:27+00:00 | Sports | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 4 independent outlets (5 source reports) Deepti Sharma said on Thursday she would aim to score at least 300 if India bat first in the opening ODI of the three-match series against Zimbabwe in Vadodara on Friday. The all-rounder, named vice-captain for the series after Harmanpreet Kaur stepped down across formats, said she welcomed the responsibility of supporting new captain Smriti Mandhana. "When you get a new role, I take it as a challenge," Deepti said, adding she hopes to help Mandhana as much as possible. India dominated the preceding T20Is but Deepti cautioned against taking Zimbabwe lightly. The final playing XI for Friday's first match will be decided closer to the start, she said. ## Indian Opinion Analysis All four outlets report the same newsworthy facts from the pre-series press conference: Deepti Sharma’s vice-captaincy appointment, her stated aim to support Smriti Mandhana, and India’s target of 300-plus if batting first. The Hindu adds context by noting the previous 300-plus scores at the same venue and including Zimbabwe captain Josephine Nkomo’s own concerns about converting starts. The other three carry nearly identical PTI copy, with no additional framing or omission. The net effect is straight wire-style reporting from every source, with The Hindu providing the only independent colour through the opponent’s perspective. The coverage is uniform and news-driven, leaving the substantive debate, whether India can reach that target against Zimbabwe’s bowlers, entirely to the match itself, which begins on Friday, 23 October 2026. ## Coverage Coverage: 3 sources, 3 neutral - indiatoday.in (neutral report) Straight wire copy, no framing beyond event - Syndicated copy - rediff.com Identical PTI copy, no added analysis - ndtv.com Brief wire copy, no departure from facts - thehindu.com (neutral report) Adds venue context and opponent quote, no slant This brief was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Update, 23 October 2026: this story now draws on 4 sources. Last updated 2026-10-23T03:11:59+00:00. Tags: Deepti Sharma, Indian women's cricket team, Smriti Mandhana, Zimbabwe women's cricket team Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/deepti-sharma-ready-to-back-captain-mandhana-as-new-vice-captain/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/deepti-sharma-ready-to-back-captain-mandhana-as-new-vice-captain/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/