‘We Used to Get Scared Very Quickly’: India Captain Harmanpreet Kaur Says Playing ‘Brave Cricket’ Improved Team’s Performance – News18
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Harmanpreet Kaur-led India are currently in Sri Lanka for the Asia Cup. (PTI Photo)
Harmanpreet Kaur believes switching to aggressive approach has resulted in the team winning more tournaments in the past few years.
India women captain Harmanpreet Kaur says the preferring the aggressive route has proved quite beneficial for the team and feels playing ‘brave cricket’ and taking ‘brave decisions’ have resulted in the team’s good performances in the past seven-right years.
“In the last 7-8 years, our team’s performance has been very good,” Harmanpreet said on Star Sports. “Even before that, we used to play cricket, but we weren’t able to win so many tournaments, and we weren’t able to play such impressive cricket. So we always discuss that if there are two options, we will always choose the aggressive option.”
“Before, it felt like we were playing a little scared cricket. When things didn’t go according to our plan, we used to get scared very quickly, but now we play a little brave cricket, so we make brave decisions. With time, we have forced people to come to the stadium through our performance,” she added.
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Harmanpreet says cricket has given her everything she dreamt during her childhood, equating the sport to god.
“Cricket, I think, is everything to me. Without cricket, I don’t think I would be anything. The name that cricket has given me, no other field could have given it to me. So I think, for me, cricket is like a god. Whatever I dreamt of in my childhood, whatever I dreamt of while playing, everything has been given to me by cricket,” the 35-year-old said.
Harmanpreet recalled the time when she was in a dilemma on whom first to send her picture in Indian jersey: her parents or the coach who gave her the platform to launch her cricket journey.
“I can say off-field, when I held the Indian jersey for the first time, I took a photo after wearing it for the first time, and I was just thinking about who deserves this photo first. Should I send it to my parents, or the coach who gave me this platform, who gave me admission to his school, and said, ‘I will start cricket in school for you,’ should I send it to him? So I was so confused, who should I send first, because both were equally important to me,” she said.
Currently, Harmanpreet is leading India in the 2024 Women’s Asia Cup T20 in Sri Lanka where they are the defending champions.
