IND vs ENG: 'Happy hunting ground ' - India coach credits WPL for India's historic T20I series against England
India's women's cricket team secured their first-ever T20I series victory against England with a 3-2 win, despite losing the final match on Saturday. Head coach
Amol Muzumdar
attributed this historic achievement to the Women's Premier League (WPL) and competitive domestic cricket season, emphasizing their crucial role in player development.
The series win was sealed after India's dominant six-wicket triumph in the fourth T20I at Manchester on Wednesday, though they lost the thrilling fifth match by five wickets on the last ball.
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"WPL has been an integral part of the progress of the players. There's no doubt about it. But there are other tournaments as well in India which we really have a good look at it. There are so many domestic players playing. WPL is just a part of the initiative of the BCCI.
So, I think it's been a happy hunting ground for us, the WPL. But at the same time, there are other tournaments which also take the importance," Muzumdar said at the post-match press conference.
Debutant left-arm spinner Shree Charani emerged as a standout performer, claiming 10 wickets in the series and earning the 'Player of the Series' award, despite going wicketless in the final match.
"I guess, you know, from WPL we identified her and then I think her progress has been fantastic.
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She's been phenomenal in this series. We had a good look at her in the Sri Lanka series where we played a tri-series against South Africa and Sri Lanka. So, I think she's been the find. We were searching for a left-arm spinner and she's fitted the bill perfectly," Muzumdar noted.
The coach highlighted bowling and fielding as key takeaways from the series, complementing India's traditionally strong batting lineup.
"I think the key takeaways were our bowling.
There's no doubt about it. We had a game plan before we set off from the Indian shores. We had a good camp and we focused quite a bit on our bowling and fielding, which showed in this series. I think the biggest takeaways without a doubt have been our bowling and our fielding. Having said that, the batting has been our strength for a long time. A year-and-a-half that I've been in charge, I think we've played some fearless cricket as far as batting is concerned.
The two departments which we wanted to take care of was bowling and fielding," he explained.
Radha Yadav
's performance in bowling and fielding received special mention from Muzumdar.
"She's been phenomenal. She puts in a lot of hard work. Not many people know it, but behind the scenes there's a lot of hard work that she puts in as far as fielding is concerned. Radha is somebody we actually have to stop her sometimes. She's got a knack of picking up those brilliant catches.
I've seen it in the Dubai T20 World Cup and she picked up a magnificent catch there," he shared.
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Who do you think was the standout player in the series?
Shree Charani
Radha Yadav
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Regarding the final match loss, Muzumdar expressed mixed emotions while remaining pleased with the series victory.
"To be honest, mixed emotions. At the halfway mark, when we had a chat at the ground, we said that either we make a match out of it and we fight till the last run that is there. So, I think they responded really well. Pleased with the results," he said.
With the T20 World Cup scheduled in England in 2026, Muzumdar views this series win as valuable preparation.
"World Cup in 2026, same place. So we've picked the squad accordingly and we've started on a good note, I guess. Winning the T20 series here against England, that too the first time ever. So it's a pleasing result. The preparation has already started," he concluded.
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