“Performing well against South Africa will surely boost our confidence” - Harmanpreet Kaur
Indian women’s ODI vice-captain Harmanpreet Kaur feels that performing well in the upcoming limited-overs series against South Africa will give a fillip to the team's confidence.
The India-South Africa series kicks off with the first of three ODIs in Lucknow on March 7. It will mark the Indian team's return to international cricket after a year-long hiatus owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking at a virtual press conference ahead of the series, Harmanpreet Kaur admitted that every series would be important for the team as the build-up towards the World Cup continues. The hard-hitting batter said in this regard:
”Every tournament is important for us. Definitely, South Africa is one team who have performed very well in the last couple of years. Also, we haven’t played any cricket for the last year (owing to COVID). So if we manage to perform well against South Africa, it will surely boost our confidence.”
Meanwhile, all-rounder Shikha Pandey and wicketkeeper Taniya Bhatia have been left out of India's limited-overs squads, with Veda Krishnamurthy, Ekta Bisht and Anuja Patil also missing out. Moreover, 17-year old teenage sensation Shafali Verma has only been picked for the T20Is.
The South Africa series comprises of five ODIs and three T20Is. While the ODI team will be captained by Mithali Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur will lead the T20I squad. The South Africa home series will be India's first assignment after they finished runner-up at the T20 World Cup last year.
Harmanpreet Kaur set to complete a century of ODIs
The Indian women’s team’s first ODI against South Africa on Sunday will be special, as it would be the 100th in the format for vice-captain Harmanpreet Kaur.
Her last ODI was against West Indies in November 2019. She was unbeaten on zero as India won the match by six wickets.
In 99 previous one-dayers, the 31-year-old has 2372 runs to her name with three hundreds, doing so at an average of 34.88.
However, Harmanpreet Kaur is best known for her spectacular 171 not out off 115 balls against Australia in the 2017 World Cup semi-final, which propelled India to the final.
Harmanpreet Kaur also smashed a hundred in the 2018 World T20 game against New Zealand in Guyana.