Harmanpreet Kaur On India's Preparations For Women's T20 World Cup 2020 And Shafali Verma

The Indian Women’s T20 team skipper Harmanpreet Kaur in a recent interview talked at length how her team is getting used to the conditions and the tracks in Australia with the help of recently-held Tri-series.

They’ve played Australia in the series decider, after which the Kaur’s team will open their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 campaign against Australia itself.

However, they lost the finale by 11 runs at Junctional Oval in Melbourne.

Since the last 2018 T20 World Cup in the West Indies, the Indian women have only been able to register ten victories in the 19 games played so far.

In comparison, teams such as Australia and England boast a win ratio of approximately 80 per cent since the last world event. Although India will take heart from their last performance against the Aussies on Saturday, where Kaur’s team chased down a target of 173 runs, which is their highest in the format.

Harmanpreet Kaur talks about her 171 run knock, Shafali Verma and India’s preparations for Women’s T20 World Cup:

The 30-year-old all-rounder revealed in a recent interview that her team is taking the tri-series as an opportunity to prepare themselves for the World Cup challenge.

“When the opposition is good, you can definitely improve as a team and put yourself in different situations to learn how to handle pressure. In that sense we are using the Tri-series to brush up certain areas and try to be more calculative in all departments,” Kaur said.

She also talked about India’s latest sensation 16-year-old Shafali Verma, who helped India chase down Australia’s target on Saturday.

Shafali scored 49 runs off 28 balls to lead India to a historic triumph against the hosts.

“Shafali gives great freedom to Smriti (Mandhana) to play her natural game. The day Shafali clicks, the team is on the front foot. I want to tell her she is someone who has to keep working on her game because she is not someone who is ordinary,” added Kaur.

The India skipper also said that in her tough days, she uses her own 171 run knock as a medium to motivate herself.

She revealed, “That innings is very close to my heart, and it will keep motivating and inspiring me to do well in future. On tough days, I always recall that innings, and after watching it again, it makes me feel better.”

Now, India begins their World Cup against Australia on 21st February, at the Spotless Stadium.