India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur praised her teammates’ efforts and urged them to make winning a habit after the hosts completed a clean sweep against Sri Lanka, winning the fifth and final T20I by 15 runs.
Kaur, named Player of the Match for her impressive 68 off 43 deliveries, is optimistic about her team maintaining this momentum all the way to the T20 World Cup title. The 5-0 victory also marked India Women’s third clean sweep in a bilateral T20I series, following similar results against the West Indies in 2019 and Bangladesh in 2024.
Earlier in 2024, India clinched the ODI World Cup title by defeating South Africa in the final, marking their first triumph in the tournament.
“Yeah, I mean, 2025 has been really great for us. For all the hard work we have done, this year we have got the credit. Now, it is all about repeating the good habits we’ve been on, keeping winning the way we have done this year,” said Harmanpreet Kaur.
“One thing is that we have played a lot of T20 cricket together. It was about believing in ourselves that we can do that. Everyone was positive when Sir (Amol Muzumdar) spoke about the strike rates, lifting our standards. Everyone was happy, and we wanted to set those standards. Going forward, we want to look at this series and think of what we can do ahead.”
With key batters Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues absent, Kaur stepped up, scoring 68 runs when the team was struggling at 77 for 5, forming a crucial 61-run partnership with Amanjot Kaur to help the team reach a competitive total. Her innings included nine boundaries and a six.
“As a batter, it’s my responsibility to give strength to that order and contribute. Shifting to T20 from ODIs wasn’t easy, but everyone was excited to play. We fought for this and are happy with how all things came together. We wanted everyone to be available and play in this series,” said Harmanpreet.
Looking ahead, Kaur has her eyes set on the forthcoming Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026, starting from January 9, and she aims to replicate the success of the ODI World Cup.
“Next is WPL, which is important for all of us. Hopefully, we play our best cricket and enjoy ourselves over there. The next six months are important; we want to keep working hard and raising the bar for all of us. Hopefully, the way things have worked for us in ODIs, we want the same things working for us in the T20s.”