Smriti Mandhana has gone through a lot in the past month. She played a pivotal role in India winning the Women’s World Cup but then had to overcome a tumultuous time in her personal life
Smriti Mandhana has gone through a lot in the past month. She played a pivotal role in India winning the Women’s World Cup but then had to overcome a tumultuous time in her personal life. The star batter, however, is now back to doing what she loves the most – playing cricket. Mandhana has been named vice-captain of the Indian T20I side that will play against Sri Lanka in a series starting December 21. It is India’s first bilateral contest since the Women’s World Cup final on November 2. On Wednesday, Mandhana reunited with India captain Harmanpreet Kaur for an event where she talked about her thought process.
“Well, to be fair, I mean, as Harman said, the love for the game, and I don’t think I love anything in life more than cricket. So, when you go out to bat or when you go out to represent your country, I don’t think any other thoughts are there in the mind. When you put on the Indian jersey, the only thing you want to do is represent India and win the match for the country,” Mandhana said at the event. Incidentally, this was Mandhana’s first public appearance since she called off her marriage with music composer Palash Muchhal.
“And yeah, I mean, the biggest motivation is that when you put on the jersey and India is written on it. I mean, I always tell everyone that once you put on the jersey, you just keep all your problems aside and just be on the field, because you have a responsibility and you are one among two billion people who are representing your country. And I mean, just the thought of that is enough for you to have that razor-sharp focus and do what you want to do.”
She was also asked about disagreements within the team. “Well, I think, firstly, I don’t look at it as issues because everyone is wanting to win the game for the country and everyone has their own opinion on how we will win the game for the country,” Mandhana said.
“But genuinely, if we don’t have those discussions or arguments, we aren’t winning on the ground. Because if we do not have those sorts of discussions where we are disagreeing about something, that means we are not passionate enough to win the match for the team. So, we definitely do have those sorts of discussions.”
