Indian women's cricket team skipper Harmanpreet Kaur.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur remained optimistic that India can grab their maiden global title in the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, and said conditions in the UAE could work to their advantage.
The International Cricket Council has recently shifted the showpiece, to be held between October 3 and 20, to the UAE from Bangladesh owing to the political unrest in the latter nation.
“Whenever we play on this kind of stage (World Cup), we always want to do well. We have always done well in the past as well, and hopefully, this time we will break that final barrier and go all the way,” Harmanpreet told PTI videos.
Harmanpreet was on Tuesday appointed as the captain of the Indian team for the T20 World Cup.
The 35-year-old did not read too much into the venue shift, and said the conditions in the UAE are quite similar to India.
“We have not played much cricket in the UAE. But the conditions in the UAE are going to be similar to Indian conditions.
“We will see how the conditions play out (there) and try to adjust ourselves to the conditions as soon as possible,” said Harmanpreet, who led India to the final of the 2020 T20 World Cup.
Irrespective of the playing conditions, she wanted the team to dish out a “positive” game in the World Cup.
“As a team, we learn from our defeats and break those barriers that are pushing us back. Hopefully this time we can express ourselves in a more positive way in the World Cup,” she said.
Harmanpreet also backed the Indian bowlers, who floundered in the recent Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka, to deliver in the World Cup.
“The bowlers are working really hard as a team and, hopefully, in this World Cup we tick all the boxes.”
Harmanpreet, who led Mumbai Indians to WPL victory last year, said the key to winning the World Cup will be to keep themselves in the present.
“It is always important for us to play good cricket, keeping ourselves in the present. Whatever the situation is in front of us…we go there and evaluate (it) as soon as possible,” she signed off.