Harmanpreet: 'This is our best ever team at a T20 World Cup'

“If I talk about this team, we have a few players who have been playing for a long time and they know their roles really well,” Harmanpreet said at the pre-departure press conference in Mumbai. “I can say that this is the best team we are going for a T20 World Cup with.

“Pooja [Vastrakar] is doing well and Renuka [Singh] is supporting her really well. She [Renuka] is someone who is always giving us breakthroughs. Arundhati [Reddy] is someone who can always come and bowl a few overs for the team and bat in the deep. I can’t compare our bowling line-up with other teams because every team has its own positives and negatives, but I’m quite confident in my team. I know what they are doing and what they are capable of.”

“During the Asia Cup, we played really good cricket, if I talk about the entire tournament,” Harmanpreet said. “It was just one odd game that day when things didn’t go according to the way we wanted. We sat and discussed how we wanted to work on our shortcomings in the camps and where we can improve if next time these kinds of situations arise.”

“We had a fitness camp which happened at the NCA and fitness and fielding camp,” Muzumdar said. “That was specifically done for those two areas and the skills [aspect] were not touched. The entire 15 days were delegated to fitness and fielding.

“Later on, we had a ten-day skills camp, where there were not just the net sessions but the players played almost five games in ten days. So if you ask for game time, we have ticked that box. We played some very competitive games. There were different oppositions, there were different skill sets that were chosen for those particular games.”

“When you talk [to a psychologist] personally, you know what you are talking and the areas you want to focus on,” she said. “But when it comes to the team, it is important that everyone opens up so that as a team we can work together and help the player as needed. We had a few sessions where we talked to each other about how we wre feeling and how we wanted to go about it. With Mugdha’s help, there were a lot of sessions after which we felt well and then after executing it on the ground, we felt better. She is really working hard on us, and so far, it is really helping us.”

‘We will reveal our No. 3 closer to opening game’ – Muzumdar

Muzumdar was also guarded on the No. 3 spot, which has been in focus in recent times. Since Jemimah Rodrigues’ shift down to No. 5 in April, India have tried Yastika Bhatia, D Hemalatha, S Sajana and Uma Chetry at that spot. Hemalatha got the longest run, batting at No. 3 in seven of the 12 games India played since April. With Bhatia’s return, though, things are a bit unclear.

“Ever since I’ve taken over, we have had some tough series against good teams – England, Australia, South Africa, Bangladesh, and then Asia Cup. So, I think the preparation has been fantastic,” Muzumdar said. “As far as the top six is concerned, I think they’re the best in the country.

“I know for a fact that in T20, the No. 3 sets the game up. We have identified [our No. 3] but we will reveal that only closer to our opening game.”

The World Cup was moved to the UAE after the anti-government protests in Bangladesh. Muzumdar said while the change in the venue did put a spanner in the works, India were well-equipped for the challenges.

“We had specifically gone to Bangladesh in May and played five T20Is to get used to conditions. I think conditions [in UAE] would be like what we have over here in India,” said Muzumdar, who was the batting coach of Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2020, which was held in the UAE around the same period. “It is just that start of the season, I think there will be a little bit of bounce on the surfaces in Dubai especially.

“Humidity will play a part over there. There will be a lot of heat over there, hot and humid. But I think we’ll have to go there and just assess the situation, assess the ground conditions first. We do have three games in Dubai and then one in Sharjah. We will have to really go there, feel the pitch, and then decide how and which bowlers and what combination we need to play.”

For Harmanpreet, it will be her ninth T20 World Cup, having played in every edition since the inaugural one in 2009. She said she would tap into that experience to handle the pressure.

“I’ve played so many World Cups and that experience and atmosphere is totally different to any bilateral series or any other tournament,” she said. “I’m going with the same excitement as I had when I was just a 19-year-old. I just want to go there and enjoy myself. I know now I have so much experience with me.

“I know what the pressure is like and how I’m going to handle it. [It is about playing] with full freedom and just not thinking about what is the result. But if I go there and play freely and enjoy my cricket, I know I can change a lot of things.”

S Sudarshanan is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo. @Sudarshanan7