Amol Muzumdar hints at specialist T20I squad for India women: ‘Not long’ | Cricket News

Indian women’s cricket team have been excellent in Test and ODI formats in recent times. Under former captain Harmanpreet Kaur, they won four of their last five Tests, a big feat considering that only four countries play Test cricket in the women’s game. They are also the reigning Women’s ODI World Cup champions, having clinched their maiden title almost exactly a year ago.However, their T20I game still needs improvement. India were knocked out in the league stage of the 2024 and 2026 T20 World Cups. In the shortest format, the team needs to improve on many fronts.Head coach Amol Muzumdar believes India could soon have a specialist T20I squad, similar to the men’s team, with the next generation of cricketers better equipped to meet the demands of the format. Asked how soon that could become a reality, Muzumdar replied: “Not long.”“We’re already on that path. There’s some amazing talent coming through. The talent I’ve seen at the CoE (Centre of Excellence), where they hold the India Under-15 and U-19 camps, is terrific. The work at the CoE is superb. The camps are a good reflection of where Indian women’s cricket is at the moment. I’m sure it’s in a healthy state,” he said at an event organised by the Sports Journalists’ Association of Mumbai (SJAM) at the MIG Club on Saturday.Muzumdar believes the next generation could speed up that transition. Having grown up with the demands of modern T20 cricket, these players have a better understanding of the importance of nutrition, fitness and fielding.“They are tuned in. They are professionals. Even the U-15 players are professionals. They understand the nutrition aspect of the game. They understand the fitness aspect of the game. They understand fielding. They’re terrific fielders. They’re good athletes. They understand that athleticism is key in cricket. You’ll soon find that when the younger generation takes over, India will be in a good state,” he said.The coach also said that a player’s willingness to learn was as important to him as their skill. “I see whether he or she is receptive. If he or she is receptive, you know it from their body language. You need to learn to understand the body language of the player. Over the years, I have spent a few years in First-Class cricket, and I do understand that I can know a certain player through their body language on the ground. I try to catch those signals. There is always that correct timing of that advice that has to be given. So as a coach, you need to understand when to say, how to say and what to say,” he felt.Muzumdar said he was also conscious of giving players the space they needed. “Sometimes you have to respect the space that the athlete wants. You can have 10,000 things as a coach to tell that athlete. But whether he or she is in that time frame or the mind frame to understand what you are doing…” he said.A year after India won their maiden Women’s ODI World Cup title, beating South Africa in the final at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on November 3, Muzumdar recalled the team spirit that marked the campaign. He credited the unity within the squad and the atmosphere in the dressing room for helping the team during the tournament.“If I have to pinpoint just one, then I think the unity in the camp and the dressing room atmosphere. Because of that unity, the dressing room atmosphere was very light. There was a little bit of a buzz around in the dressing room, which I love to create,” he said.Muzumdar compared that atmosphere to the Mumbai teams he played for in the 1990s, which won the Ranji Trophy several times during that period.“I have played in such teams where whenever we have done well, what I am talking about in the 90s, when we did well, just the dressing room atmosphere was phenomenal. There was some kind of a buzz triggered to the kind of cricket that was reflected on the ground. So I think if I have to pinpoint one, it is unity in the camp and just the buzz in the dressing room,” he said.Having worked closely with Harmanpreet during his three-year tenure, Muzumdar praised the outgoing captain and said he was looking forward to working with new skipper Smriti Mandhana.“I had a very good time with Harman as a captain. But I’m also looking forward to the future. With utmost respect, the manner in which she conducted herself as a captain, as a skipper, was superb. I feel myself really lucky that I had that opportunity for the three years that I spent with her as a coach. I could gather the mindset of the captain… I could gather the mindset of the leader in her. I consider myself really lucky about it,” he said.Muzumdar said he wanted to build a culture of dominance and ruthlessness on the field in the Indian women’s team.“Dominance is something that we have always spoken about within the squad. Being ruthless on the ground is another thing that we have always maintained. I don’t know where it stems from,” he said.Much of Muzumdar’s coaching philosophy comes from his formative years in Mumbai cricket. The former domestic stalwart said he wanted to pass on those lessons to the Indian women’s team.“Obviously, from the background where I come, the kind of majority growth in Mumbai cricket was similar. I try to inculcate those things or give it back. If we start dominating world cricket, I would be happy.”