“I think it’s just the mentality because, if you see, we have very good players in our team,” Harmanpreet said ahead of the T20 series against West Indies starting on Sunday. “They all performed really well whenever they got the chance. I think in big games it’s just about mentality and what you’re feeling individually. Because, as a player, a As a team, you can only talk about the things you have done well. At the end of the day, it is only you who is dealing with the situation (situation and pressure) and it is only about you. That’s how you take these things forward.
“We discuss whatever is required to win but, at the end of the day, it is the mentality of the individual performer that is how you will win the game for the team.”
“It’s really hard when you’re going through this,” he said. “Also, we can only talk about the good things we have done in the past. I think it is very important to have a team-bonding session. So, when we were coming back from Australia, on the flight We had a good conversation because that was the time when we could talk and think about how we could start this series. Yesterday was a good day off and today we had a good meeting where we discussed what we need to do with this series. How to proceed in a special series.”
Scheduling didn’t help. These T20Is in Navi Mumbai will come on the heels of ODIs in Perth and Brisbane – the last was on December 11 – and while Harmanpreet said it was part of playing at the highest level, she admitted it was not easy.
“Honestly, it is difficult because you know we are coming from Australia. After the game, within just four-five hours we left the country and came back to India,” he said. “But being professionals, these things happen and we just want to stay motivated. Yesterday was an off day so we tried to rest well and we are looking forward to tomorrow’s game.”
“Imagine when you have so little time, it’s very difficult to come back and reflect on things that you’ve done in the past. At the same time, we just have to keep talking about positive things. The young girls who have come to the team They have performed really well in the domestic matches and they are positive too. I think it is very important to stick together, which is what we are doing.”
When Harmanpreet was asked about being dropped from the team for the series, she remained silent.
“I would ask the right person to ask, because I can only talk about the team that is here, and what we can do to win this series,” Harmanpreet said. “I think about Shafali or any other player, it is better to ask the right persons.”
