New Delhi, June 26 (IANS) India batter Jemimah Rodrigues has urged her teammates to take the attack to six-time champions Australia instead of allowing them to dictate terms when the two sides meet in a virtual quarterfinal of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 at Lord’s. Jemimah said India must match Australia’s intensity if they are to keep their semifinal hopes alive.

“The thing about Australia is that they never let you settle. They are always attacking, always putting pressure. If you want to do well against them, you can’t be defensive. You must dominate and take the game to them and our team enjoys that challenge. We know there is no other way. You must match their intensity and stay ahead. That kind of mindset works well for us. Shafali Verma has played a lot against them. Renuka has also bowled well against Australia in the past. Most of our players have good experience against them. We have faced them many times. But on the day, it all comes down to execution. We just need to go out there, back ourselves, and play with that aggressive intent. If we do that, I think everything will fall into place,” Jemimah said on JioStar.

India captain Harmanpreet Kaur echoed the confidence, saying India’s recent T20I series win in Australia had proved the team could challenge the world champions despite the retirement of Alyssa Healy.

“We recently played a T20I series against Australia on their home soil, and we performed well. That series gave us confidence. It’s not that after Alyssa Healy’s retirement, Australia have become weaker. They are still a very strong side. They have a deep pool of players and a system that keeps producing quality cricketers. One player leaving doesn’t change that. Sophie Molineux is a great captain too. She leads from the front and knows how to get the best out of her players. She is calm under pressure and reads the game well. She has been part of this Australian setup for a long time, so she understands the dynamics of the team. Under her leadership, they will be well prepared. But we have always played good cricket against them. We have always given them tough competition in big tournaments. The mindset remains the same, we will give our best, work hard, and try to dominate them in every department. We know they are a strong team, but we also know we have the ability to match them,” Harmanpreet said on JioStar.

The India skipper added that the team would focus on its own strengths rather than getting carried away by Australia’s formidable reputation.

“We know Australia have great cricketers. They have world-class players in every department. But we don’t spend too much time thinking about them. We focus on our own skills. We talk about what we need to do on the match day, our batting plans, our bowling lengths, and our fielding standards. We discuss how we can execute our skills under pressure. We know what Australia have achieved in the past, but that doesn’t matter when we step onto the field. It’s only about what we can do and how we can deliver to win that match. So, we keep the focus on ourselves. We talk about our strengths and how we can use them against them. That is what we will continue to do,” she said.

Head coach Amol Mazumdar said the transformation of the Indian side over the past two years had instilled belief that they could compete with any team in the world.

“When I joined the team as head coach in October 2023, there was a need for a reset in the dressing room. The team needed a shake-up, a change in mindset, approach, and attitude. We introduced new systems, new roles, and challenged the players to take more responsibility. The players responded well to the changes we brought in. They bought into the new plans and started backing each other. The results on the field are there for everyone to see. This Indian women’s team is very different from what it was two years ago. Talking about Australia, they are a very strong side. Everyone knows that. They have world-class players in every department. But so are we. We are not behind them in any way. We went to Australia and beat them 2-1 in a T20 series. That was the first time India has ever beaten Australia in a T20 series. That win gave us a lot of belief. We can take confidence from that and prepare ourselves well for the World Cup clash,” Mazumdar concluded.

–IANS

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