’’Will look to give more opportunities to new players in the upcoming matches’’, Harmanpreet

India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur relying on spinners to deliver the goods in second T20I against England; says she’s happy with offie Shreyanka Patil and left-armer Saika Ishaque’s performance so far

Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur stretches during India’s practice session at Wankhede yesterday. Pic/Atul Kamble

Indian women’s team captain Harmanpreet Kaur on Friday said a long rope will be given to the players selected for the ongoing series against England as well as the three-match affair against Australia at home, keeping in mind next year’s T20 World Cup.

The Indian women have a busy month ahead as they will play two more T20Is and a one-off Test against England, followed by a one-off Test, three ODIs and as many T20Is against Australia. While acknowledging that spin bowling is India’s biggest strength, Harmanpreet said the team will look to give more opportunities to new players in the upcoming matches.

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Spinners Saika Ishaque (left) and Shreyanka Patil after receiving their maiden T20I caps on Wednesday. Pic/BCCI

India have picked three new spinners in Shreyanka Patil, Saika Ishaque and Mannat Kashyap for the ongoing three-match T20I series against England. “The team which we picked for this T20I is the one we want to build for the upcoming World Cup,” Harmanpreet told media after India’s training session here ahead of the second match of the series against England.

While both Patil and Ishaque made their debuts in the first T20I played on Wednesday which India lost by 38 runs, Kashyap featured in the three-match ‘A’ series before getting her maiden call-up to the national side. “Saika and Shreyanka have done really well in the last game. They are quite confident. After the game we did sit with them and discuss what best they can do in the upcoming games,” Harmanpreet said.

However, it was a forgettable outing for both the young bowlers as Patil returned with figures of 2-44 while Ishaque took 1-38 in their respective four overs each. “For them, they just need opportunities and so many opportunities are there now. They just need to go out there and execute themselves in the best way,” the skipper added.

Harmanpreet backed India to continue relying on their spinners in these matches even though the returns were largely disappointing. India used four spinners to bowl 12 overs, but they managed only three wickets while giving away more than 120 runs. “In our domestic set-up, so many spin bowlers are doing really well. It is something which has always been our strength,” Harmanpreet said. “I feel spinners are more confident and they’ve always done really well whenever they’ve got opportunities. That’s why we went with the spin attack,” she added.

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