ICC T20 Women's WC: Harmanpreet Kaur-led Indian team is on a mission

Harmanpreet Kaur leads a bunch of girls with a lot of chutzpah. The standout being Jemimah Rodrigues or “Lil J”. The 19-year-old Bandra girl is the team’s lead vocalist, guitarist, joker-in-chief and, as per the International Cricket Council, the best T20I batter outside Australasia. She had shown great adaptability by scoring 401 runs for the Yorkshire Diamonds in the Kia Super League in England in 2019, and recently got her first taste of Australian conditions in the tri-series against the hosts and England.

Rodrigues aside, vice captain Smriti Mandhana, too, chips in with her swagger. A close friend and mentor to Rodrigues, Mandhana has wowed the world with her stroke-play for years. And, despite injury and sub-par form, she has accumulated more than 400 T20 runs in 2019.

And then there are talented youngsters such as Shafali Verma, Taniya Bhatia and Radha Yadav, who have no bitter memories of past defeats to carry into the T20I World Cup, which starts on February 21 in Australia.

Overall, the team is on the ascent and boasts top-quality players. But, the big question is—when will it win an ICC trophy? Ranked fourth, the Indian team has reached three semifinals (2009, 2010, 2018), but exited early in 2012, 2014 and 2016.

“[The] team’s performance has been mercurial right from Shanta’s (Rangaswamy) time (1980s),” said former Indian women’s coach Purnima Rau.

Before leaving for Australia, captain Kaur had said: “We were quite close in the last two World Cups, the only thing we need to keep in mind is how to handle pressure in the tournaments. This time, rather than thinking we are going for a big tournament, we just want to focus on our skills. When we focus on these things, we produce better results.”

After the last T20I World Cup, a lot happened. Mithali Raj accused then coach Ramesh Powar of bias, there were differences among senior players, Powar was removed and former India opener W.V. Raman was appointed coach in December 2018.

The team struggled against England and New Zealand in the first half of 2019. Mithali then retired from T20Is, paving the way for a 15-year-old Shafali. The selectors backed young blood; some have clicked, some are taking their time. The latter part of 2019 saw India defeat South Africa and then the West Indies; in 2020, the team reached the final of the crucial tri-series in Australia.

As the new coach, Raman’s focus was not just on stabilising the team, but also on plugging holes in the batting line-up, and improving fielding and overall fitness. The last two remain works in progress.

The top trio—Kaur, Mandhana and Rodrigues—missed the Women's Big Bash League because of the Women’s Challenger Trophy, followed by a camp at the National Cricket Academy. The players needed the time to bond with each other and with coach Raman. “They are all in good nick and they have also worked on their skills,” Raman said before leaving for Australia. “Which means that you do have a fair bit of security and confidence going into this tournament, given what has happened in the last six months.”

Consistency, however, is an issue. In the tri-series, for instance, India beat and lost to both teams; they struggled to score 130, but chased 170 plus. “The team needs more balance and consistency going into the World Cup,” said former India captain Anjum Chopra.

The team's batting issues start after number four, with Veda Krishnamurthy and Taniya Bhatia failing to fire. It is here that Kaur’s captaincy will be tested; she has to get the combination right every time. And, in the absence of a strong middle order, Kaur has to play the dual role of anchoring and finishing the innings. “The middle order needs a bit of a shuffle, the batting order can be more streamlined,” said Chopra.

Said Rau: “I think Harman should come up a bit more. She is the best player and the best player must play the most balls. She is a great finisher. Veda is struggling because she does not get time to settle down.”

While spin is India's forte and leggie Poonam Yadav is expected to deliver, an injury kept her out of the recent tri-series. In her absence, the onus falls on Rajeshwari Gayakwad and Radha Yadav, with all-rounder Deepti Sharma chipping in. Shikha Pandey, a squadron leader in the Air Force, leads the pace attack with Pooja Vastrakar and Arundhati Reddy. But what the team lacks is a genuine medium-pace-bowling all-rounder such as Sophie Devine (New Zealand) or Ellyse Perry (Australia). “We haven't always managed to deliver on our potential as a team and winning games is always about how well you are able to execute your skills,” Kaur told icc-cricket.com.

Said Rau: “Our bowling in Powerplays and at the death needs to be sorted out.” Added Chopra: “Every team has the one fast bowler who is the X factor. We are dependent on spin as our pacers are not delivering as required.” Pandey’s return after being dropped has been encouraging, but her economy rate needs improvement.

The challenge for India is not just from the top teams, but also from the rapidly improving South Africa and New Zealand. India are placed in Group A alongside champions Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Only a shockingly poor outing could see India failing to make the last four.

“Globally, the women’s game has improved,” said Rau. “Each team has some player who is standing out. I think 170-175 would be a match-winning score.”

The women’s T20 game is evolving rapidly. All the cricket boards believe this format is the way forward for women’s cricket and the teams are playing it more. As Kaur told icc-cricket.com, “It wasn’t so long ago that a par score in T20 cricket was 120 or 130. Teams are looking much more confident and are trying to get bigger scores on the board. The World Cup has the potential to revolutionise the game even further.” In this context, India’s early arrival in Australia for the tri-series was crucial to their World Cup plans.

“We need a little more character in pressure situations,” said Rau. “It is a mental thing. The ones who have a lot of matches under their belt now need to deliver.”