Harmanpreet at 200 — standing the test of time

Another day. Another milestone.

But it is unlikely that Harmanpreet Kaur would be thinking too much about becoming the first woman — or man for that matter — to play 200 T20Is when she walks out to toss with Laura Wolvaardt at Old Trafford here on Sunday afternoon.

She could only be concerned about the job at hand, the match against South Africa, and the significance of it, when it comes to getting a ticket for the semifinals at the Women’s T20 World Cup.

Harmanpreet has not just been one of the key batters for India for several years, but an inspirational captain as well.

It was only fitting that she was the skipper when India won the ODI World Cup at Navi Mumbai beating South Africa.

She deserved that honour. Her fairytale innings against Australia in the semifinals of the 2017 World Cup took the Indians to the final, where they went down to England at Lord’s.

That knock inspired not just the girls in India but across the world.

Among them was Chloe Tryon. “It was incredible to watch that innings and it has been a remarkable to watch her journey, too,” says the South African all-rounder, who has been her teammate at Mumbai Indians in the WPL.

“Since the time I was a small girl, I was looking up to big players and she has been a role model for so many players around the world.”

Tryon thinks it is amazing that Harmanpreet continues to play. “And she is leading from the front, which is really good to see,” she says. “I hope she has 200 games more; I don’t know how many more she could push through. It is great to see how much the women’s game has grown and the way she has taken it forward. She is a fierce player. You get afraid the longer she bats.”