Her appointment came after a review meeting was held in Guwahati on Monday, featuring her, Harmanpreet, head coach Amol Muzumdar and BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia. Former India captain Anjum Chopra believes Smriti Mandhana does not have to measure herself against Harmanpreet Kaur as the side’s new captain and should instead carve out her own leadership path after being handed charge across formats. Smriti was named India’s all-format captain on the same day Harmanpreet stepped down after nearly a decade at the helm. Smriti, the left-handed opener, was also part of the selection meeting alongside the Amita Sharma-led selection panel to pick the two squads for the Zimbabwe series.
Her first full-time assignment as India’s captain is the home series against Zimbabwe, which opens with three T20Is in Raipur from October 16.
“Smriti does not need to step into Harman’s shoes at all. She has experience leading India. “If you weren’t looking for a change, why did the change happen? I don’t expect Smriti to be a clone of Harman, and nobody should be a clone. You take the best parts of every leader, bring them forward, and make them your own. Smriti has been around the Indian team for a long time now. “The next step for her is deciding what takeaways to imbibe into her own decision-making and how to push the team forward. If every captain is identical and uses the same template, there is no need for change. “No captain should be the same. They need to elevate the team beyond where it was when they received the baton, ensuring that by the time the next person takes over, the team has reached greater heights. That is how the sport progresses, and that is how players grow individually,” she elaborated. “It’s not going to be simple for any player to adapt to that change. “While you have different setups across formats, the captain remains the same for the T20I and ODI sides. How everyone shapes up moving toward the ICC Champions Trophy in India will be closely measured. Everyone has to start defining their own pathway. every player in this team must understand their individual role before they step onto that path collectively.” While the captain makes the ultimate decisions.
The Guwahati games against England in 2019 were the first time she captained the team and, fortunately, she has had more time in a leadership role prior to becoming full-time captain than Harman or anyone else had.
The good thing is the Indian team will have a little time to settle in, and I assume there will be a camp before the series starts.
