Harmanpreet's India are looking to emulate MS Dhoni's triumph at the T20 World Cup in South Africa
The winners of the last ICC Women's T20 World Cup are gearing up to go one better at the 2023 tournament in South Africa.
MS Dhoni led India to the inaugural Men's T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007. With the women's tournament starting on February 10, captain Harmanpreet Kaur admitted that repeating history was on their agenda and recalled "some good memories" in South Africa .
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"As for South Africa, it has some good memories for Indian fans and we hope to bring more joy to them. Our men's team played the 2003 World Cup final there and the women's team reached the final in 2005.
"Then the Indian men's team did better when they won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. Can we emulate them once again? Only time will tell, but we're definitely aiming for it!"
India reached the final of the 2020 Women's T20 World Cup, which Australia won on March 8, International Women's Day, in front of a packed MCG crowd.
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"Our last ICC Women's T20 World Cup match - the 2020 final at the MCG - was watched by a crowd of 86,174! That's inspiration enough as we prepare to start our campaign this time," India captain Harmanpreet Kaur wrote in her exclusive column for ICC.
"This match, played on International Women's Day three years ago, was a huge moment for women's sport around the world as the iconic venue for the Australia v India match was filled with fervor," she recalled.
Harmanpreet reflected on how much the women's game has progressed since its inception. “I still get goosebumps when I think about that match, when I think back to my earlier years on the circuit and realize how much progress women's cricket has made.
"I've played in all the T20 World Cups so far - in fact I made my debut in the format in the inaugural edition in 2009 - and I've seen the pace of the game rise dramatically," she said.
She conceded that the current No.1 team in the MRF Tires ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings and five-time T20 World Cup winners Australia will go into the 2023 edition as favourites, but added that other teams have also upped their game, closing the gap .
#TurnItUp | The ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 is here!
#TurnItUp | The ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 is here!
"I am sure this year's tournament in South Africa will be ultra-competitive," said Harmanpreet. “Although Australia enter the tournament as favourites, very little separates the other teams, promising close matches and top-class performances.
“India have made it to the finals of ICC women's global events three times - the 2005 and 2017 World Cups over 50 being the other occasions - and are hungry for that elusive title as we head to South Africa with high hopes and confidence. an outfit that can beat any team in its time."
The Indian skipper is confident of her team's chances at the T20 World Cup, pointing to their recent success as well as the presence of a good mix of young and experienced talent, including Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh, who won the U-19 Women's. T20 World Cup.
“We have senior players as well as young shot-makers like Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh who are fresh off winning the U-19 World Cup for the Indian team, playing an attractive brand of cricket and now also have enough experience of first-class cricket. We have depth in the batting and enough variety in the bowling with Renuka Singh doing well in pace to do what is required against the top teams."
"We've been preparing well too. In recent months we've won the Asia Cup and Commonwealth Games silver. The home series against Australia in December also gave us an opportunity to test ourselves and test our combinations against the best team."
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"Though we lost the series 4-1, there was enough excitement in the series for the thousands of people thronging the stadiums in Mumbai. The attendances for these matches also reflected the growing attention the women's game has managed to attract in recent times," Harmanpreet. added.
"Now it's all about capitalizing on our experience, staying focused and not getting overwhelmed at key critical points. We believe in our ability and understand that we need to step it up a notch to be remembered as a world class Indian side." "
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