Harmanpreet Kaur Talks About Team Spirit Before India vs Pakistan Women’s Asia Cup Match
Indian women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur emphasizes the importance of a positive team atmosphere ahead of their Asia Cup opener against Pakistan. She believes that a comfortable and supportive environment enhances on-field performance.
The defending champions, India, will start their journey towards a record-extending eighth Asia Cup title when they face Pakistan at Dambulla on Friday.
Importance of Team Atmosphere
Speaking to Star Sports, Kaur said, “I feel like there should be such an atmosphere in the team that everyone enjoys each other’s company, and can share their feelings with each other. And when the atmosphere is like that, the team’s performance becomes good as well.”
She added, “So, my motive as a leader is that all of us feel comfortable with each other. And when you do not enjoy it, you feel like you have to go and play with players who you are not comfortable with. But if you feel like you are going to play with your friends and make the team win, that feeling is different. So we want an atmosphere where everyone is happy, supporting each other and the results are good as well. So I think as a leader that is my motive that everyone talks well to each other, enjoy each other’s company and whenever there are hard times, they support each other. So those things are very important for me as a leader.”
Recent Successes
Leading up to the Women’s Asia Cup, Team India has enjoyed a lot of on-field success, like beating South Africa 3-0 in the ODI series and one-off Test recently in June-July and drawing the three-match T20I series 1-1, with one game washed out due to rain.
Before that, India had a successful tour of Bangladesh, beating them 5-0 in T20Is from April-May.
Between December last year and January, India also hosted Australia for a one-off Test, three ODIs and T20Is each, winning the Test match, but losing the ODI series 0-3 and the T20I series 1-2.
Upcoming Challenges
All of these series/tournaments will be crucial for India’s preparations for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup being held this year from October 3-20 in Bangladesh, where India will be aiming for its first-ever major ICC women’s trophy.
India’s Women’s Asia Cup Squad
| Player | Role |
|---|---|
| Harmanpreet Kaur (c) | Captain |
| Smriti Mandhana (vc) | Vice-Captain |
| Shafali Verma | Player |
| Deepti Sharma | Player |
| Jemimah Rodrigues | Player |
| Richa Ghosh (wk) | Wicketkeeper |
| Uma Chetry (wk) | Wicketkeeper |
| Pooja Vastrakar | Player |
| Arundhati Reddy | Player |
| Renuka Singh Thakur | Player |
| Dayalan Hemalatha | Player |
| Asha Sobhana | Player |
| Radha Yadav | Player |
| Shreyanka Patil | Player |
| Sajana Sajeevan | Player |
Travelling Reserves
| Player |
|---|
| Shweta Sehrawat |
| Saika Ishaque |
| Tanuja Kanwer |
| Meghna Singh |
Doubts Revealed
Harmanpreet Kaur -: Harmanpreet Kaur is the captain of the Indian women’s cricket team. She is a very talented player and leads her team in important matches.
Team Spirit -: Team spirit means working together and supporting each other to achieve a common goal. It helps the team perform better and stay positive.
Asia Cup -: The Asia Cup is a cricket tournament where teams from Asia compete against each other. It is a big event and winning it is a great honor.
Pakistan -: Pakistan is a neighboring country of India. In cricket, matches between India and Pakistan are very exciting and watched by many people.
Defending Champions -: Defending champions are the team that won the last tournament. India won the last Asia Cup, so they are the defending champions this time.
ICC Women’s T20 World Cup -: The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup is a global cricket tournament where teams from all over the world compete. It is held every two years and is very prestigious.
