Birmingham, June 13 (IANS) India head coach Amol Muzumdar said the side is fortunate to have the services of skipper Harmanpreet Kaur as they gear up to begin their 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup campaign against Pakistan at Edgbaston on Sunday, stressing that her vast experience will be invaluable to the side’s quest of winning the silverware.

Set to play in her tenth Women’s T20 World Cup, Harmanpreet is among seven players to play in all editions of the competition. “You cannot buy experience, isn’t it? So, she spent a lot of time on the ground. We’re lucky that we have the services of Harmanpreet Kaur.

“The experience that she carries. In 2009, I guess, she made her debut. So, since then, about 17 years of international cricket is a great thing. We’re lucky to have Harman around this group. I’m sure she’ll put her best foot forward in this World Cup,” Muzumdar told reporters ahead of Sunday’s clash.

The coach underlined that the T20 World Cup presents fresh challenges for the side despite India’s ODI World Cup triumph last year. “It’s a completely different format, isn’t it? Yes, we won the World Cup but that was in the ODIs, this is a brand new format. So, I guess we are really looking forward for it. One thing I can assure you is that we would take a lot from that World Cup before getting into this tournament because we know for a fact that we will cross the line,” he said.

Muzumdar further said the squad has acclimatised well to English conditions after a three‑week camp at the BCCI CoE and playing the T20I series against England, which they lost 2-1, as well as warm-up games in Cardiff. “They are in a very good space at the moment. We have got used to these conditions, although the sun is shining very brightly.

“But we were in Cardiff, there was different weather over there and we all know as a team that in England there will be different challenges, and no two days are the same. As far as acclimatisation is concerned, we’ve had three weeks over here now. We came on 23rd of May and today is, what, 12th of June, so almost three weeks and we’ve got used to it now,” he said.

Muzumdar also revealed that preparations for the tournament began immediately after the ODI World Cup win. “The preparation for this T20 World Cup started immediately after the last one that we won in November. The first series that we played after that World Cup was against Sri Lanka and we as a group, we discussed that we will be looking forward and we will be preparing, with all our energies to be focused on the event in England.

“So, what, six and a half months or seven months that we have prepared really well. As per plans, we do have our schedule for six months in advance, so we’ve gone exactly according to the plan,” he said.

He then praised Yastika Bhatia’s spirited return to number three slot after missing the previous ODI World Cup due to a left knee ACL injury needing surgery. “It was very unfortunate that Yastika missed out on the previous World Cup. It was just on the last day, last minute, probably the last over that was bowled in that camp and as a coach I can say that particular camp in Vishakhapatnam had gone exactly according to the plan and we had ticked all the boxes.

“It was really unfortunate that at the last minute she had to miss out. It was a huge injury and the way she has come back, the way she has fought her way back in this team, it just tells you a little bit of an insight of how this team reacts to challenges and Yastika is a good example of that,” he said.

On areas of improvement, Muzumdar said running between the wickets remains a key focus. “We’ve been saying this for the last two and a half years and that’s one of the parts of it. Every time we speak about our improvements, what we need to improve on, this line comes up and it wasn’t any different this time around as well.

“But as you said, if you can spot the intent, then we are on the right track. One of the things that we always speak about in our, that’s always in the improvement zone. So it’s a work in progress,” he noted.

He also admitted that India’s bowling resources have given him a good selection headache. “Definitely it has been our biggest strength. But if you look at this team, we have got eight quality bowlers – quality spin and seam bowlers. So we’ve got four and four each and we’ve got and have to select from them.

“I won’t say hard, but we really have to sit and have a good chat about what our combination would be and I’m sure we’re going to have that. But, if you see the variety in this team, it’s really good.”

On the absence of Amanjot Kaur and Kashvee Gautam due to injuries, as well as Pooja Vastrakar being unavailable, Muzumdar added, “I think Pooja has been playing domestic cricket and she was a part of the WPL. But we had always thought about Amanjot. When she was injured, we always knew that Amanjot gives us that real good balance and so did Kashvee.

“But unfortunately, you can’t (control much) – it’s a high intensity game. There will be some injuries and they’re on the right track back home. I’m sure the CoE is taking care of both of them, who are on the right track of rehab. Pooja played the WPL and we’ll have to see her more in domestic cricket,” he said.

He signed off by backing wicketkeeper‑batter Richa Ghosh to deliver as a finisher in the tournament. “Before the last game, I’ll not deny that she had a little bit of a lean phase. But she’s a world-class player and we always had this talk around in the changing room that somebody as good and as talented as Richa, it will require a couple of hits out of the ground and it will all come back.

“So, I guess it happened in the last game and I’m glad that we’re getting into the World Cup with Richa being in form. She spent quality game time in the previous game. No doubt, she does a very great job for us at number 5-6. According to the situation, we get her in the game and Richa is a world-class player and she’s a mature cricketer.”

–IANS

nr/