"Playing cricket back-to-back has helped a lot" - Harmanpreet Kaur upbeat about India's chances in the T20I series against Australia

Indian women's T20I skipper Harmanpreet Kaur has opened up on missing the ODI and one-off pink ball Test due to injury on the eve of the T20I series opener against Australia. She stated that it was difficult for her to be on the sidelines for such a long period of time.

Kaur missed the ODI and Test leg of the Australian tour due to a thumb injury she sustained during training. However, she has now fully recovered and is excited to lead the visitors in the upcoming T20I rubber.

Addressing the media in a virtual press conference ahead of the T20I series opener, Harmanpreet Kaur said:

"It was difficult to miss out on the ODIs and Tests. I am feeling much better and confident of doing well in the T20Is. Very excited for the series.

"It was a hard year without cricket and then I got injured a couple of times. Personally, I feel sometimes you have to give time to yourself. Right now, I just want to enjoy and give 100 per cent in every opportunity I get."

Harmanpreet Kaur revealed that she wasn't even able to hold the bat initially but as the days progressed, she started batting in the nets.

The 32-year-old also hailed the support staff for ensuring she returned to full fitness before the start of the T20I series.

"I was not able to hold the bat initially. After the third day of the Test, I was able to bat well in the nets. It was disappointing to miss the Test. The support staff have taken good care of me to get ready for the T20Is," she said.

With Australia holding a 6-4 lead, Team India will have to win all three matches of the T20I series to win the multi-format rubber.

"We are in better shape regarding everyone's role in the team" - Harmanpreet Kaur

The Women in Blue have lost consecutive T20I rubbers this year to South Africa on home soil and then against England in the UK.

However, Harmanpreet Kaur wasn't ready to look too much into it as she stated that the team was playing after a one-year COVID-19 enforced hiatus.

"South Africa and England, we played after almost a year. We were building a new team. Now, we are in better shape regarding everyone's role in the team. Playing cricket back-to-back has helped a lot. Everybody is taking responsibility, it's a good sign," she said.

Harmanpreet Kaur also spoke about the prospect of having pacer Shikha Pandey and top-order batter Jemimah Rodrigues back into the playing XI.

Both Pandey and Rodrigues weren't considered for the ODIs and one-off Test but Kaur put that down to India now having the luxury of a large pool of players to pick from.

She said:

"Shikha Pandey has done very well for India. But sometimes, even good players miss out due to team requirements. We were going with the same XI earlier, but now we have a pool of 25 players, and whoever comes in is ready to play international cricket.

"Jemimah had a good season with The Hundred. If she gets to play a role and put up a similar performance there is nothing like it for the team."

The first T20I will be played at the Carrara Oval in Queensland on Thursday (October 07).