Navi Mumbai, Jan 10 (IANS) Mumbai Indians captain Harmanpreet Kaur, named Player of the Match for her unbeaten 74 in the 50-run win over Delhi Capitals (DC), said she was pleased with the team’s response after their season opener loss, adding that the team was keen to execute their plans better with an even stronger mindset.

“I think in the last game it came down to bowling one good ball, and unfortunately we couldn’t do that. But even then, we were still in the game. Today, we came in with a more positive mindset, knowing that if we didn’t play good cricket yesterday and were still in it, imagine how good we could be if we played well. It’s really about believing in yourself and believing at the right time.”

“It was a great game for us. Really happy with the way we played today. Obviously, we were very disappointed yesterday – things didn’t go our way. But today we came in with an even stronger mindset so that we could execute our plans better,” she said in the post-match presentation ceremony.

Harmanpreet also talked about the importance of building on her start, something which she missed out on Friday. “Yesterday as well I got a bit of a start, but before coming out to bat today, I just spoke to myself. I told myself that I got a good start yesterday but unfortunately couldn’t continue. Today was a new day, a new innings, and I wanted to go in with the same mindset, no matter what happened before.”

She further credited the depth in MI’s batting line‑up for giving her freedom at the crease. “I think I can say that. I’m really enjoying my batting, and for that I give a lot of credit to my Indian team – and now this team as well. We have long batting line-ups, which gives me the freedom to go out and express myself. I’m not worried about batting deep or holding back, and that’s probably why I’m enjoying myself so much.”

On the bowling effort, she praised the collective performance, led by three-fers from Amelia Kerr and Nicola Carey. “Honestly, every wicket. In T20 cricket, if you take all 10 wickets, you really can’t ask for more from your team. Every wicket was important, and I’m really happy with how strong we were on the field today.”

–IANS

nr/