TEST: HARMANPREET KAUR: WE WANT TO MAKE WINNING WORLD CUPS A HABIT

• This column by India captain Harmanpreet Kaur is for editorial use giving credit to the ICC

It’s that time of the year again. We are on the cusp of another ICC tournament — the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. ICC events always bring excitement, anticipation, and high expectations. Ahead of the mega event, the preparations have been excellent. In fact, they began right after the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.

Winning that World Cup was a seminal moment for women’s cricket in India. It was bigger than one trophy. Most importantly, it brought belief and showed young girls that the highest stage is not out of reach.

The Women’s World Cup 2025 win gave us a massive boost in confidence. However, it was only the beginning. We want to make winning a habit. While the 2025 World Cup win gave us immense joy, it also gave us responsibility. We know expectations will rise, and that brings pressure, of course, but it is a good kind of pressure. It tells you that you have earned something important, and now you have to recreate it again.

Yes, the memories from the 2025 World Cup triumph are still fresh, and we would like to carry forward the confidence and belief from that win into the T20 World Cup. We know the standards we want to maintain, and the recent T20I series against Sri Lanka, Australia, and South Africa have helped us test ourselves and given us plenty of learnings.

The team management and the Board have been leaving no stone unturned when it comes to our preparations. We have had some excellent camps at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, which have helped us immensely. There have also been plenty of honest conversations. That is what makes me feel positive going into another ICC event.

Winning this tournament would mean a great deal. Every ICC trophy has its own challenges. The format is shorter, the margins are smaller, and the pressure is greater. We will have to be sharper right from the start, and winning the key moments will be crucial. If we win this tournament, it would signal the beginning of a stronger and more consistent era for Indian women’s cricket.

What excites me about this squad is the balance we have. There is talent, fearlessness, and a good mix of experience and youth. A lot of credit goes to the Women’s Premier League (WPL). It has unearthed real talent and given players regular exposure to pressure situations, higher standards, and some of the best cricketers in the world. The players have grown in maturity, and the league has helped build a winning mindset.

One of the most important aspects of this team is its unity. The support staff have done a wonderful job of creating a vibrant and positive atmosphere, which gives us a healthy boost heading into the tournament.

My memories of the 2017 World Cup in England are still very fresh. My 171 against Australia changed a lot of things in my life. The team’s performance in the tournament was a turning point for Indian women’s cricket. While we could not cross the finish line in the final, the reception we got from fans and the media on our return home was something special. That campaign made people sit up and take notice. Since then, the women’s game has grown a lot.

Looking back, I feel proud of how far we have come. Looking ahead, we want to keep getting better, pushing the standard higher and making winning a habit.

ENDS