Melbourne: Performances of the teams have gone better and better in the last two years and the upcoming women T20 World Cup has the potential to revolutionise the game even further, India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur said on Friday.
India, though, have struggled to put competitive scores in the ongoing tri-series in Australia, suffering back-to-back defeats against the hosts and England.
They are in a must-win situation against the hosts here on Saturday. Even a win doesn’t guarantee India’s place in the final as it will depend on the outcome of the game between England and Australia.
In a column for the ICC, Harmanpreet wrote how women’s T20 cricket has come a long way in the last two years.
“It wasn’t so long ago that a par score in T20 cricket was 120 or 130. Now, that’s not enough. Teams are looking much more confident and trying to get bigger scores on the board,” said Harmanpreet.
“It’s that change in the mindset that means performances are getting better across the board and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 has the potential to revolutionise the game even further.”
The tournament begins in Australia on February 21.
“If I look back two years, India’s 50-over side was doing well and our T20 was struggling. But in the past two years, we have transformed as a T20 team and are very positive going to Australia.
“When you look at the other teams competing in the World Cup, they’re all looking in good shape ahead of the tournament. All of the teams have strengths – but so do we. Our strength is spin,” said Haramanpreet.
She said that tri-series will help the team management find the best combination for the T20 World Cup.
“Our bowlers are always looking for the wicket-taking delivery and when we have our backs to the wall,” she said.
While spinners have been doing the job for the team, the batters, especially the middler-order, needs to up its game.
“We haven’t always managed to deliver on our potential as a team and winning games is always about how well you’re able to execute your skills.
“In recent series wins over South Africa and the West Indies, we played to our full potential and that helped us get positive results. If we give 100 per cent as a collective, results take care of themselves,” said the skipper.
Harmanpreet also promised that 16-year-old Richa Ghosh will get a game in the tri-series. India have only one league game left to try out Ghosh, touted as the next big thing in women’s cricket alongside opener Shafali Verma, who is also 16. (AGENCIES)
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