SHORTLY after India’s opening game of the 2022 ODI World Cup against Pakistan, doubts were raised about Harmanpreet Kaur’s place in the XI. Since her fifty at the 2017 World Cup final, the all-rounder had averaged 27.78 over 33 games with just three 50-plus scores.
While there were signs of her coming good in 2021, injuries meant she hardly made an impact. However, since the Pakistan game in March, Harmanpreet has amassed 437 across nine innings at an average of 54.62 while striking at 87.75. Although she has excelled in every ODI World Cup since 2013, this time something seemed different.
As Mithali Raj announced her retirement, Harmanpreet picked up from where she left at the World Cup, winning the player of the series award in both T20I and ODI series against Sri Lanka. On Thursday, too, she came in to bat at No 6 and rescued India from 94/4 to 221/7 with an 88-ball 75 in the third ODI. After helping India finish with 255/9, she took the crucial wicket of Chamari Athapaththu, helping her side start their ODI Championship cycle with a 3-0 sweep.
For the first time since 2017, she had crossed the 500-run mark in ODIs, registering seven 40-plus scores so far in 2022, her highest in a calendar year. But, more than the runs and wickets, she seemed to be enjoying her time in the middle, whether during her partnership with Pooja Vastrakar or when she dismissed Athapaththu. So, what has changed? Where is this newfound consistency coming from?
Often when elite athletes make peace with their past failures and are content with where they are in their career, they seem to play to the best of their potential. Harmanpreet, too, is no different as she’s spoken about the burden of her unbeaten 171 against Australia in 2017 and how she had put pressure on herself to live up to that generational innings. But now, she is past that.
The 33-year-old said as much on Thursday. “For me, it is always important that I should enjoy each and every moment. In between, I was not enjoying it because sometimes you take a lot of pressure. It could happen with anyone and I was going through those things. Now, I have made a plan that I have to enjoy whatever the situation. I will just stay and give the start the team needs. That is what I am trying to focus on in the last few months,” said Harmanpreet.
Even as a captain, she was impressed with her bowling changes, trying to manage a pace attack with little international experience. She was more than happy to hand the ball to every batter capable of rolling their arms over. Having sealed the series, she pushed herself to No 6 on Thursday to ensure other batters got necessary game time before the Commonwealth Games.
For India to do well in the CWG and the 2023 T20 World Cup, they would need Harmanpreet, the batter and captain, at her best. While it is still too early to say, the signs from Sri Lanka have been nothing but positive.
Brief scores: India 255/9 in 50 ovs (Harmanpreet 75, Pooja 56) bt Sri Lanka 216 all out in 47.3 ovs (Nilakshi 48; Gayakwad 3/36).