The India women cricket team has landed in Colombo for their upcoming white-ball matches against hosts Sri Lanka. The tour kickstarts post-Mithali Raj era with the legendary cricketer recently announcing her retirement from international cricket.
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The squad, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, arrived in Colombo on Sunday with Sri Lanka Cricket sharing a host of images on their official Twitter handle.
India Women’s Team led by Harmanpreet Kaur arrives in Sri Lanka.
India and Sri Lanka will play three T20Is in Dambulla on June 23, 25 and 27 followed by as many ODIs on July 1, 4 and 7.#SLvIND #SLWvINDW #SLWomens pic.twitter.com/7u8nfAy16W
— Sri Lanka Cricket (@OfficialSLC) June 19, 2022
The squad underwent a camp at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru before leaving for Sri Lanka and it included an interaction with the legendary VVS Laxman who now heads NCA.
Harmanpreet said the tour provides them with an opportunity to build as a team since they will be playing without Mithali and Jhulan Goswami.
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“We are working hard on our team, we have great combinations. And for us, it is a good tour to start, because first-time we are going to play without our seniors and a great opportunity for all of us to build a team,” Harmanpreet said on Saturday.
The tour gets underway with the first T20I at Dambulla on June 23. India will play three T20Is and as many ODIs during their sojourn.
Coach Ramesh Powar said the aim is to create a winning habit.
“We are looking at consistency, we are looking at (creating) a winning habit. For that, we all came together as captain, coach, and vice-captain. We have already spoken to the BCCI, and V.V.S Laxman who is the head of cricket (at NCA) and there have been a few things going on,” said Powar in a pre-departure virtual press conference.
Powar said the team is working on the fielding and fitness aspect and want it to take it to the next level. “We are trying to work on our fielding and fitness and take our players to the next level. That is the immediate goal that we are trying to achieve. Moving forward, we want to win World Cups, but it is important that you build a squad that can compete in every condition and against every opposition. This is what we are working on,” he said.
“When you move forward in a transition period, you need to give opportunities to young players to cement their places and for that, as support staff, we try to give them support through NCA or through skill coaches to conquer every situation. This is the right time for young players to take that opportunity and do well going forward,” he added.
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