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Leading Team India for the first time in Test and playing in cricket's long format after a long gap of more than two years, captain Harmanpreet Kaur lavished praise on head coach Amol Muzumdar.
The hosts secured a resounding victory against England by 347 runs, a record triumph margin (in terms of runs) in women's Test cricket. Harmanpreet, who made her Test debut in 2014, has led India in T20I and ODI formats, but this was her maiden assignment as captain in red-ball cricket. "Our coach helped us a lot, I had zero experience in leading the team in Test. I was trusting his (Muzumdar's) decisions -- be it sending Shubha (Satheesh) at one-down in the first innings or whatever ideas he gave in bowling like the first 40 minutes were important today, the idea was to put them (England) in early and utilise the morning conditions," Harmanpreet said in a post-match press conference after the monumental win. She stated that Muzumdar provided critical feedback when they met on the third morning to decide whether India should bat or declare their second inning based on the overnight score. "His experience really helped us and it also gave me time to decide what was the best for the team," Harmanpreet added. She stated that India relied significantly on their batting expertise in the first innings to develop bowling and fielding strategies, which resulted in England getting bowled out for 136 and 131 in the two innings. "We do not have much experience playing Test cricket to determine what sort of field placements can help where. The more you bat, the more you would understand what fields to set for your bowlers. The credit (also) goes to the bowlers, whatever fields they were given they bowled according to that. Your job becomes easier when your bowlers can bowl in the right spots," said the India captain. Harmanpreet-led India team will now face off against Australia for a one-off Test at Wankhede from December 21. She stated that India was able to carry out all of their preparations and set the tone with their fielding, which proved vital for the hosts as they prepare to face Australia in another one-off Test next week. "Everything went according to the plan. We got the score that we wanted and the bowlers did a good job, both medium pacers and spinners knew their plans and performed accordingly. The biggest positive was our fielding, especially in a long game when you have to field for 90 overs (in a day) it is very important to maintain the energy. We managed to set the tone with our fielding," she said. (ANI)
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