India captain Harmanpreet Kaur will become the first player to feature in 200 T20Is during the T20 World Cup match against South Africa. Tributes from coaches and opponents highlight her legacy and impact on women's cricket.
Harmanpreet Kaur will make history on Sunday as the India captain is all set to become the first player to appear in 200 T20 internationals. Ever-present at ICC Women's T20 World Cups, the 37-year-old will lead her side out to take on South Africa at Old Trafford in a crunch game in Group A. Kaur made her T20I debut 17 years ago in England in the 2009 T20 World Cup edition, and will achieve a historic feat when she takes the field against South Africa in Manchester, according to ICC Media release.
'A top-level athlete and role model'
India bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi paid tribute to the skipper, remarking on the role she has played in shaping the development of the players around her. "I think Harman is a top-level athlete," he said. She's a role model for almost all cricketers globally. The way she has conducted herself over the years she's been a role model throughout. She's been a performer in any format. She's playing her 200th T20, that's a big thing. And we are all as excited to watch her perform."
"And work ethics-wise, she keeps on working on the basics. She shares a lot of experience with the youngsters. So that also is a dimension where she comes in. At times, there is a lot of information available, but coming from someone who has performed so well at the highest level, those little minor points which she shares with the players, that actually help boost the careers of a lot of youngsters," he added.
Opponents laud Kaur's longevity
Having been around for so long, Kaur's opponents on Sunday, South Africa, are well aware of the threat she still poses. None more so than all-rounder Chloe Tryon, her teammate at the Mumbai Indians in the Women's Premier League, but now a foe in the international arena.
She said, "200 games is a lot. She makes it sound easy. I've had the opportunity to play alongside her, watch her do her thing. It's been remarkable to watch her journey, when I was a small girl as well, just looking up to big players. She's been a role model for so many people around the world. To see her still playing cricket is amazing, and leading from the front, which is really good to see. Hopefully, she has 200 more. I don't know how many more she can push through, but look, it's great to see how the women's game has grown and how she's taken the game forward."
High stakes for India vs South Africa clash
South Africa return to Manchester needing a win, having lost to Australia in their opener at the same ground before beating Pakistan in a close encounter at Edgbaston. India, meanwhile, has won their two games so far, defeating Pakistan and the Netherlands. However, the fifth-ranked Proteas have the upper hand in recent meetings between the team two places above them in the ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings.
South Africa dominated a five-match series at home, winning 4-1, but Salvi believes that India are all the better for it. He said, "Actually, those five games that we played in South Africa taught us a lot. Especially when you lose the series, you tend to reflect a lot into it and find out the grey areas where we needed to work on. And I think as a bowling unit, as an entire group, they discussed a lot of stuff amongst themselves, with us, and they have come up with the conclusions that where we went wrong, and we have addressed that in the camps and matches."
Equally, Tryon is keen to balance using the positives from their series victory with focusing on the task at hand as they face a de facto quarter-final. "Destiny is in our hands," she said. "We know how important this game is for us, and we can't overthink it too much. We can take the points that we had against them at home in that 4-1 series win, what really worked for us as a group, but not dwelling too much on that. It's different going to a World Cup, there is a lot of pressure added, and we know it's like a quarter-final, so destiny is in our hands, and how can we make sure we play our best cricket," she added. (ANI)
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