Smriti Mandhana Era Begins in Indian Women’s Cricket as She Takes Charge as Captain
A new era is set to begin in Indian women’s cricket, with Smriti Mandhana ready to take charge as the team’s captain. She will officially begin her new journey on Friday. Although Mandhana has led the Indian team on previous occasions, those opportunities came when regular captain Harmanpreet Kaur was unavailable. This time, she will take on the responsibility as the full-time captain.
XtraTime Web Desk
A new era is set to begin in Indian women’s cricket, with Smriti Mandhana ready to take charge as the team’s captain. She will officially begin her new journey on Friday. Although Mandhana has led the Indian team on previous occasions, those opportunities came when regular captain Harmanpreet Kaur was unavailable. This time, she will take on the responsibility as the full-time captain.
Mandhana hopes to draw on her experience of leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Women’s Premier League (WPL). Her primary objective is to build a professional and united team capable of reaching the top spot across all formats. She has made it clear that she believes in being a players’ captain.
India’s T20I series against Zimbabwe begins on Friday, marking the start of Mandhana’s new chapter as captain. She takes over the leadership baton from Harmanpreet Kaur, with the responsibility of guiding the team into a new phase.
Explaining her leadership philosophy, Mandhana emphasised that being captain comes with responsibilities that extend far beyond being at the top of the team hierarchy.
“You might be at the top of the list, but in practice, you are the last person,” Mandhana explained, highlighting that a captain must always be available to support teammates whenever they need help.
With 13 years of international cricket behind her, Mandhana believes she has matured both as a person and as a cricketer. She feels that this growth has also had a positive impact on her performances.
The Indian batter firmly believes that giving players the freedom to express themselves and progress in their own way not only improves individual performances but also benefits the team as a whole.
Mandhana also acknowledged that she understands her teammates better now than she did earlier in her career. This greater understanding, she believes, will help her become a more effective leader.
Armed with experience, confidence and the good wishes of her supporters, Mandhana is ready to embrace the challenge. Indian women’s cricket now looks towards its new captain as she begins her journey with the ambition of taking the team to greater heights.
