‘Hopefully we’ll see many more Test matches’ – Harmanpreet Kaur on women’s red-ball future

India captain Harmanpreet Kaur said players naturally want more opportunities to play Test cricket, but believes the women’s game is moving in the right direction.

Since the start of 2021, only four teams, Australia, England, India, and South Africa, have played women’s Test cricket, with just 13 Tests being staged over the past five-and-a-half years, including this week’s match.

“As a cricketer, we definitely want to be part of many Test matches. But I think that’s totally the higher authorities’ call. Till now, I have seen all the highs and lows, and I have seen women’s cricket growing all these years. I think we are in the right hands, and they’re the right ones to take the call,” said Harmanpreet as quoted by Cricbuzz.

“But if you ask me as a player, I definitely want to play lots of cricket and don’t want to sit at home doing nothing. We are enjoying our time, we are quite busy, and in between we are getting opportunities. Last March also we played one Test and now tomorrow we’re going to get one more Test. I think things are going the right way and hopefully, in future, we’ll see many more Test matches coming up,” she added.

Need domestic red-ball cricket: Harmanpreet Kaur

Harmanpreet also highlighted the need to strengthen the domestic red-ball structure, saying regular first-class cricket would better prepare players for the challenges of Test cricket. She believes a stronger domestic system is essential for developing the skills and temperament required to succeed in the longest format.

“We do need domestic red-ball cricket because earlier we used to have it, but now we play a lot of white-ball cricket. We shifted more towards the white-ball game. Now the board is showing so much interest in red-ball cricket and definitely we are going to get back our domestic competition,” said Harmanpreet.

“These Test matches are very important and I would love to have some more time to prepare as a team. Last time when domestic cricket was played, many of us weren’t there because we were playing international cricket, but some of the girls got that opportunity. If we get some good quality time to prepare and then go there and execute ourselves, that can be more practical. Whatever is in our hands, we are just trying to do our best,” she added.

World Cup loss was a hard moment: Harmanpreet Kaur

India head into the one-off Test determined to bounce back from their disappointing early exit at the Women’s T20 World Cup. Harmanpreet said the team quickly put that setback behind them and shifted its focus to the challenges of red-ball cricket, with the dressing room fully committed to making a strong start in the one-off Test.

“It was a very hard moment for all of us because we really prepared hard for the World Cup, but unfortunately we didn’t give our best. This Test match was something which kept us very excited. We all came together as a group and wanted to give our best for this match. Right now everyone looks in a good space and hopefully we’ll enjoy our cricket,” said Harmanpreet.

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