Harmanpreet Kaur explains how she played out a match winning knock against Delhi Capitals in WPL opener

Indian women’s team captain Harmanpreet Kaur who is currently on duty, leading the Mumbai Indians Women in the Women’s Premier League season 2 which kicked off last night with a clash between the reigning champions and runner-up from last season – Meg Lanning’s Delhi Capitals Women. Harmanpreet produced a splendid player of the match-winning knock last night at the Chinnaswamy and gave all the credit to one of her coaches from the early days.

Harmanpreet Kaur was coming on the back of back-to-back ODI and T20I series losses against Alyssa Healy’s Australia who came for an all-format tour last month. The two cricketing giants played a One-off Test followed by a 3-match ODI and T20I series where the hosts were only able to claim the red-ball contest before enduring an ODI whitewash and losing the T20 series by 2-1.

Mental toll post Australia series

It had taken a toll on Harmanpreet’s mental health as she went through a lean run of form and struggled to score runs throughout the month-long series. The right-hand batters amassed just 9 runs in WDOIs, 17 in WT20Is, and none in the Test match.

The pressure had increased so much that Harmanpreet Kaur was even thinking about taking a possible break from all cricketing actions and focusing solely on her mental well-being. But last night against the Delhi Capitals, Harman was perhaps at her very best and it did not seem as if she was going through a lean patch.

Disappointed with the way how the national side under her captaincy succumbed once again in front of the mighty Australians, it was one of her coaches in the past who picked up Harman from the shadows, took her to practice sessions, gave her energy and the confidence that after every dark tunnel there is bright light.

While receiving the player of the match award last night in Bengaluru for her 55 off 34, Harmanpreet Kaur would requisite her coach’s help as the key driving force behind her comeback.

“After the Australia series, I was not feeling well. He made me practice hard and gave me energy. I wanted to take a break and feel mentally well.” – Harmanpreet said via Jio Cinema post-match.

Thanks to batting exploits, Mumbai Indians Women claimed a thrilling last-ball victory. The deciding 19th over, bowled by all-rounder Alice Capsey produced everything that fans weren’t expecting as she picked up the wickets of Pooja Vastrakar (1st ball) and Harmanpreet Kaur (5th ball) before Sajeevan Sajana smacked a six off the last ball to chase down a target of 172 and claim a 4-wicket win.

Taking the game deeper was the game plan for Harmanpreet Kaur’s MI Women’s

Speaking of the nail-biting victory last night, Harmanpreet revealed that MI Women’s game plan was to take the game as deep as possible and praised Sajeevan Sajana for her six-hitting prowess that she showcased at the M. Chinnaswamy last night.

“We thought if we take the game deep, we can win the game. Sajana has been smashing sixes throughout the practice sessions and she showed what she is capable of. We had depth in our batting, and because of Sajana, I am standing here.” – Harmanpreet Kaur concluded.