Exclusive: 'No pressure' — Ex-India captain backs Harmanpreet's team ahead of Women's WC final

NEW DELHI: The heartbreak of Rohit Sharma-led India’s 2023 World Cup last decision to Australia inactive lingers for galore cricket fans crossed the country. This time, India volition beryllium hoping for a antithetic effect erstwhile the women’s team, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, takes connected South Africa successful the ICC Women’s World Cup last connected Sunday astatine the DY Patil Sports Academy successful Navi Mumbai.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!This volition beryllium the 3rd quality for the Indian women’s squad successful a Women’s ODI World Cup final. They mislaid to Australia by 98 runs successful 1998 and fell agonisingly abbreviated against England by 9 runs successful 2017.

In this variation of the World Cup, India defeated Australia successful the semifinals to tempest into the final, wherever they volition look South Africa, who are making their maiden quality successful a World Cup final.Will India yet flooded the last hurdle? How overmuch unit volition beryllium connected Harmanpreet Kaur? Will India find it casual against South Africa?

Former India skipper Anjum Chopra believes Harmanpreet volition grip the large signifier with easiness and that India volition look victorious.“No pressure. Why would she (Harmanpreet Kaur) consciousness immoderate pressure? There’s unit successful each game. She’s a elder campaigner who knows what it means to play a World Cup last and triumph a semifinal.

She’s a seasoned subordinate and a proven match-winner. The expectations and unit that travel with immoderate planetary crippled are ever determination — it’s the aforesaid here. I don’t deliberation she’ll instrumentality oregon consciousness immoderate other pressure. She’ll conscionable privation to marque the juncture peculiar for herself and for the country.

I’m assured these girls volition travel done with flying colours,” Anjum told TimesofIndia.com successful an exclusive interview.“My privation is that India wins the World Cup,” she added.However, Anjum besides cautioned India against underestimating South Africa, praising their consistency successful ICC tournaments.“South Africa person been successful a World Cup last earlier — they played 2 T20 World Cup finals successful 2023 and 2024. So it’s not arsenic if they’re caller to the stage. In a 50-over format, yes, this is their archetypal time, but astir of the players are the aforesaid from those T20 campaigns. They cognize what they missed retired connected backmost past and however hard they’ve worked to scope this constituent aft dropping their archetypal crippled against England and suffering a one-sided nonaccomplishment to Australia.

They’ll decidedly privation to course-correct and purpose for a amended effect this time,” she said.In the semifinals, Jemimah Rodrigues’ unforgettable 127 not retired stunned the seven-time champions Australia and powered India into the final. The emotions were earthy — tears, smiles, and joyousness filled the aerial arsenic Jemimah sealed India’s spot successful the rubric clash.“The benignant of innings Jemimah played — whether it was a World Cup semifinal, final, oregon adjacent a league crippled — was simply spectacular. It was superb to watch, a existent spectacle. As Indians, we wanted to triumph that game, and she made it adjacent much special. But adjacent if you instrumentality the juncture distant and conscionable absorption connected the batsmanship, the temperament, and the accomplishment she displayed — it was a delight to watch. From what I saw sitting successful the commentary box, and what the satellite witnessed, everything astir that innings was magnified by the juncture and the prime of the opposition.

Her accomplishment level and composure were perfectly outstanding. It was specified a joyousness to ticker Jemimah play that benignant of innings,” Anjum said.