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It’s definitely one of the least desirable things in sports to watch another game anxiously, knowing that the outcome will determine your fate. That’s why, with their bags packed, a few Indian players decided not to devote more than three hours of their emotional energy to the New Zealand-Pakistan match, instead choosing to occasionally check the score.
Their hopes were raised when Pakistan collapsed to 56 all out and New Zealand was restricted to 110, but they were severely dashed. India hasn’t advanced past the Women’s T20 World Cup semifinals for the first time since 2016. Harmanpreet Kaur’s team was prepared to check in immediately and depart for their different destinations with their baggage packed.
They’ll have time to think back on a campaign that never really took off between now and then. And for that reason, this loss may hurt more than the one from 2023, when they were strong competitors for most of the competition until Australia, the ultimate winners, halted them in the semifinals.
It’s great to be flexible, and since Amol Muzumdar became head coach in December of last year, India has tried out six different players at No. 3. However, the team management supported the seasoned Harmanpreet Kaur to be the impact batter there after these experiments failed to produce the expected results.
Since the beginning of 2022, Harmanpreet has averaged 94.07 in 84 innings in Twenty20 cricket. Here, the idea was to free her up to take the aggressive position while Jemimah Rodrigues—who was initially a No. 3—played the role of a spin enforcer in the middle.
However, a defeat to New Zealand forced a reorganisation, with Rodrigues starting at No. 3 against Pakistan in a match where the openers failed to strike a single boundary during the powerplay, necessitating quick runs to raise their net run rate if necessary.
The revolving door at No. 3 may have not been the only reason for their exit, but it certainly forced India to deviate from the template they had wanted to set.
The fact that Smriti Mandhana had an unmemorable tournament didn’t help either. With the exception of the fifty-score against Sri Lanka, she scored twelve, seven, and six. Over time, Mandhana’s powerplay salvo has given India’s middle order some leeway. That worked in 2023, but not this time, and it was detrimental to the squad.
Apart from using battalion-order strategies, India failed to make individual, spur-of-the-moment decisions. Similar to India’s greatest six-hitter, Richa Ghosh, he would risk a nonexistent single to provide more cover when huge hits—rather than fast singles—were needed most urgently.
or Harmanpreet’s choice to accept a single when India needed to win over Australia by 14 runs in six balls. Without a doubt, Harmanpreet represented India’s last hope. India lost two wickets in two deliveries after that. Despite the remote possibility of a chance, Harmanpreet chose to take another single when India needed 13 off 3.
Every World Cup cycle ends with doubts about a potential changeover. Since taking over in 2017, Harmanpreet, who has been captain for seven years, has been a major force behind change among a succession of coaches, including Tushar Arothe, Ramesh Powar, WV Raman, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, and Amol Muzumdar.
Similar to Rohit Sharma, Mandhana was the captain-in-waiting until he took over for Virat Kohli in 2021—coincidentally, following a group-stage exit at the T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates. Mandhana has developed into a premier batter who is well-liked by teammates and has amassed a substantial body of work.
She orchestrated the first-ever WPL victory for Royal Challengers Bengaluru earlier this year. With her age of 28 and more than ten years of expertise, the squad can find it advantageous to turn to her in order to get fresh perspective from a player who has matured under Harmanpreet and can continue her excellent performance.
With a 50-over World Cup to look forward to at home next year, it might also unshackle Harmanpreet the batter, adding yet another chapter to her already remarkable career.