Securing back-to-back series wins in England has certainly lifted the Indian women’s team’s confidence ahead of the upcoming home World Cup. However, Captain Harmanpreet Kaur emphasised that the team must “begin from ball one” as they shift focus to preparations for the global tournament.
After a series of underwhelming performances, India women’s team captain Harmanpreet Kaur made a strong comeback in the third ODI against England, leading from the front with a match-winning innings. Speaking after the match, she reflected on the mental reset and tactical adjustments that helped her rediscover her “lost mojo” and return to form.
Reflecting on ending her lean run with the bat, the Indian skipper said it was important to stay patient and trust the process. She said, “Well, obviously in all the matches, I wanted to give my best in batting also. But today’s game was very important for us. The plan was to spend some time on the wicket and then see how things will go. And I think that thing really worked for me. In the first 10 balls, I didn’t get any runs. But then I was just talking to myself, I’m not going to lose myself. Just be there for the team, and I think those things really helped me.”
In the same match, the Indian captain also completed her 4000 runs in One-Day Internationals, becoming the third Indian to reach the milestone. She mentioned, “Yeah, it’s always a great moment, adding those runs for your country. It means a lot to me, and I wish to continue doing more for the country.”
The skipper was also full of praise for young seamer Kranti Goud, who claimed 6 for 52 to restrict England to 305. In doing so, she became the second-youngest Indian woman after Deepti Sharma to take a five-wicket haul in ODIs. In a touching gesture, the captain also gifted her Player of the Match award to the young bowler.
Talking about the young fast bowler, she said, “She’s been really impressive whenever she was on the field and bowling for the team. Today also, we went with four spinners, but we knew that Kranti is someone who can always give us a breakthrough in the initial moment. And later on, also, she’s someone who can bowl really well for the team and is really happy with the kind of bowling she did today. And whenever we needed a breakthrough, she was there for the team.”
Talking about the series decider, the Indian captain commented, “Well, every game and every situation is different. Today was a totally different situation and a different pitch and a different atmosphere. But at home, conditions will be different.”
She further added, “But yeah, whenever you win, those things can always give you a positive mindset and keep you in a good place. But whenever you are playing the next game, it’s always you have to start from ball one, and I think this series will definitely give us a lot of confidence. But again, when we go back, we have to start again things from ball one.”
When asked what pleased her most about the England tour and which areas the team still needs to improve ahead of the World Cup, “Well, if you see our team is really working hard for so many years and this is the time where we are getting that reward. I am really happy all the girls are coming up and coming up with a positive mindset and working really hard on their fitness.”
Adding further, “Right now, the kind of fitness you need in international cricket. We have understood a lot of things in the past few years, and right now, just trying to pass that benchmark and setting ourselves in that position where people can talk about women’s cricket, people can take women’s cricket really seriously back home,” mentioned the Indian captain.
When asked about the rising standard of women’s cricket, the Player of the Match and Player of the Series said, “Well, nowadays women’s cricket is improving day by day. All the teams, if you see, they are batting really well. They are improving in bowling also. So, I think every team is improving day by day and now it’s only about who is going to play best cricket on that particular day.”
India’s next challenge will be a three-match One-Day International series at home against seven-time reigning world champions Australia, beginning on 14 September. The series will serve as crucial preparation before India co-hosts the Women’s World Cup with Sri Lanka from 30 September to 2 November.
