Harmanpreet Kaur emphasizes the need of Women's IPL after India’s loss in the 2nd T20I against Australia

India T20I skipper Harmanpreet Kaur echoed the sentiments of several former cricketers and critics for the start of Women’s Indian Premier League (IPL) after the visitors went down to Australia by four wickets in the second T20I at the Gold Coast on Saturday (October 9). All-rounder Tahlia McGrath starred for the home team with the bat in hand. Her vital knock of unbeaten 42 off just 33 balls enabled Australia to get over the line by four wickets with five balls to spare.

India pretty much had the match under their control till the 16^th over. But experienced pacer Shikha Pandey, who till then had been exceptional with the ball, bowled an expensive 17^th over wherein she gave away 11 runs that swung the momentum in favor of Australia’s way. For those following Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), this knock of McGrath would not have surprised them as the onlookers of the game know that she has done it several times for her team Adelaide Strikers in the WBBL.

Kaur, who has a fair share of experience in WBBL for Sydney Thunder feels the exposure players like McGrath and Sophie Molineux are getting in WBBL has helped them hone their skills and play well under pressure situations.

“If you look at the way Tahlia McGrath batted today, we can see the confidence they are getting from a tournament like WBBL. They are ready to play international cricket,” Kaur said in the post-match presser.

“She has not played much in international cricket but got to play many matches before playing for Australia. We do have a few young players who haven’t played much cricket at the highest level, like (pacer) Renuka Singh.

Domestic players will get a chance to prove under pressure situations if IPL is started: Harmanpreet Kaur

Apart from Shikha Pandey, even youngster Renuka Singh bowled an expensive 19^th over, wherein she gave away 13 runs. Kaur believes although young players such as Singh, and Yastika Bhatia have experience of playing domestic matches, IPL would be better for them to deal with pressure situations in the game.

“She has done really well in domestic cricket but still doesn’t have that much experience. If we had a women’s IPL, the domestic players would get a lot of chances to prove themselves under pressure.”

The T20I skipper also gave an example of the men’s IPL and its young players, who have performed well at the National level also. “Even when we see a young talent play, we can see the maturity in their game. They would have played at least 40-50 IPL games by then.

“I think that is the only reason we are lagging right now. Before getting to play in an international, if we get a chance to play in a domestic tournament like IPL, we will definitely improve.

“In Australia, they get 20-30 matches in WBBL before getting to international cricket. It will develop your skills and give you experience so that you don’t feel lost in international cricket,” she added.