THE MAKING OF A CAPTAIN

Harmanpreet Kaur talks to Ainee Nizami Ahmedi about finding and building her own space...

- AINEE NIZAMI AHMEDI

It is impossible not to be charmed by Harmanpreet Kaur. There’s something about that quiet demeanour that screams resilience, strength and character, and you get taken in by all of it.

The year has been quite a game-changer for Kaur. Post Mithali Raj’s retirement in June, she took over as the captain of the women’s team, and the seven months post has seen her add a host of achievements to her roll-call. The Arjuna awardee is right now India’s most successful T20 captain, overtaking the wins of MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma; she is the first Indian woman to win the International Cricket Council’s best player award and has led India to its first series win in England since 1999. The captain hat clearly sits well. I ask her what it is that makes her a good leader. “It’s a combination of selflessness, ambition, perseverance and aggression. I believe that whatever responsibility I have been given is out of faith and belief, and I do not like to fail. Despite my team’s wins or losses, I ensure they never doubt themselves.”