ODI World Cup win showed India can cross the line: Muzumdar

India’s long-awaited ODI World Cup triumph last year has reinforced the belief that the team can finally get over the line in a global tournament, said head coach Amol Muzumdar as Harmanpreet Kaur and Co begin its quest for a maiden Women’s T20 World Cup title.

India ended years of heartbreak by lifting the 50-over World Cup at home last year, having previously finished runners-up in the 2005 and 2017 ODI editions and the 2020 Women’s T20 World Cup.  Muzumdar said the historic triumph has instilled confidence within the squad ahead of its campaign opener against Pakistan on Sunday.

“It’s a completely different format, isn’t it? I mean, yes, we won the World Cup but that was in the ODIs, this is a brand new format. So, I guess we are really looking forward for it,” Muzumdar said when asked if there is extra pressure on the team. “One thing I can assure you that we would take a lot from that World Cup getting into this tournament because we know for a fact that we will cross the line.”

The Indian team has spent more than three weeks in the UK, including a three-match T20I series against England, and Muzumdar feels the players have adapted well to the conditions.

“As far as acclimatisation is concerned, we’ve had three weeks over here now. We came on 23rd of May and we’ve got used to it now.”

Muzumdar also hailed Yastika Bhatia’s return after the wicketkeeper-batter missed last year’s ODI World Cup because of a serious knee injury suffered during the team’s preparatory camp in Visakhapatnam. “I think it was very unfortunate that Yastika missed out on the previous World Cup. It was just on the last day, last minute, probably the last over that was bowled in that camp.” The left-hander has made a successful return to the T20I setup after more than two years away and has impressed at number 3, providing India with a valuable left-handed option in the middle order.

“It was really unfortunate that in the last minute she had to miss out. It was a huge injury and the way she has come back, the way she has fought her way back in this team, it just tells you a little bit of an insight of how this team reacts to challenges.

I think Yastika is a good example of that,” Muzumdar said. On India’s bowling resources, Muzumdar said the side is no longer solely dependent on spin despite it remaining a traditional strength. “Definitely, it (spin) has been our biggest strength. But if you look at this team, we have got eight quality bowlers. Quality spin bowlers and quality seam bowlers. So we’ve got four and four. If you see the variety in this team, it’s really good.”

Muzumdar also backed explosive batter Richa Ghosh to make a major impact in the tournament after she ended a lean run with a half-century in the warm-up game against England.

“I’ll not deny this, that she had a little bit of a lean phase. But she’s a world-class player. We always had this talk around in the changing room that somebody as good and as talented as Richa, it will require a couple of hits out of the ground and it will all come back.

“So, I guess it happened in the last game. And I’m glad that we’re getting into the World Cup with Richa being in. She spent quality game time in the previous game,” he said.

“No doubt, she does a very great job for us at number six, number five. According to the situation, we get her in the game. So, yeah, Richa is a world-class player and she’s a matured cricketer.”