Scoring is not the problem; it is about staying there

Smriti Mandhana vice captain, Indian women’s T20I team

- NEERU BHATIA 

FOR A WHILE now, southpaw Smriti Mandhana has set the tone for India’s batting as the opener with flair. Though early 2019 was bouncy for her, chief coach W.V. Raman, himself a former lefty opener, asked her to be patient and ignore the scoreboard pressure. The advice worked, and the 23-year-old from Sangli, Maharashtra, regained her touch. In the recently concluded tri-series against England and Australia, she scored 216 runs in five matches. Ahead of the T20I World Cup, which starts on February 21 in Australia, THE WEEK spoke to Mandhana about her form, her new opening partner and the World Cup. Excerpts from an interview:

Having seen the team reach a semi-final in the T20I World Cup and a final in the ODI version, how will you approach this tournament?

This time, I will not put any added pressure on myself. I will just enjoy my batting. That is what I have always done in a World Cup—just think of it as a regular match.

As for the team, we will look to be calm and composed and not keep thinking that it is the World Cup, because then we end up putting pressure on ourselves and [that] hampers our performance.

Does it not rankle the senior players that India has gotten close, but has not won a World Cup?

Rather, it gives you a lot of confidence that you have been there, gone to the semis and finals. That means the team is good and it is about that one day. On that particular day, someone has to click. It motivates us to go one step further.