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As India failed to make it to the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, questions were raised over Harmanpreet Kaur’s captaincy. Former India captain Mithali Raj feels that the time is now if they want to make a change in the leadership otherwise it will be too late. Mithali preferred over 24-year-old Jemimah Rodrigues to lead the team instead of vice-captain Smriti Mandhana.
"If the selectors decide to change, I would go for a young captain," Raj told PTI. "This is the time [to change]; if you delay more then we have another [ODI] World Cup on the horizon [October 2025]. If you are not doing it now, then don't do it later. Then it is too close to the World Cup.
"Smriti [Mandhana, the vice-captain since 2016] is there but I think someone like Jemimah [Rodrigues], she's 24, she's young, she will serve you more. And [she] is someone who I feel on the field gets that energy. She speaks to everybody. I was very impressed by her in this tournament.
"Despite playing those cameo roles, she never could convert her starts, but [she is] someone who really made an effort to build a momentum if there was no momentum; and if there was momentum, she tried to carry that momentum [forward]."
Mithali explains why India lost two games
India lost their opening match to New Zealand by a massive margin and then lost the must-win game against defending champions Australia. Mithali blamed Indian batters' ability to adapt to slow wickets for their early exit.
"Surprisingly, we took time to adjust to the slowness of the wicket," Raj said. "Unlike an ODI World Cup, it is a short tournament, you don't have a lot of time to adjust to the conditions. Someone like [New Zealand captain] Sophie Devine was able to score that many runs [57 not out] against us and she is not used to playing on slow tracks. We were not quick enough to adjust."
After the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, India will play a three-ODI series against New Zealand. The series will be played later this month.
