Women’s T20 World Cup 2026: Harmanpreet Kaur exudes confidence ahead of Pakistan opener despite warm-up slip against England

The stage is set for a blockbuster showdown as India prepares to lock horns with arch-rivals Pakistan in their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 opener at Edgbaston on June 14. Despite a narrow five-run defeat to tournament hosts England in their final warm-up fixture in Cardiff, Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur remains highly optimistic about her team’s preparation and mindset. 

India’s final warm-up game turned out to be a thrilling, down-to-the-wire contest. Chasing a competitive total  of 172 set by England, the Women in Blue fell just short. However, the biggest takeaway for the Indian camp was the sensational form of wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh, who kept India in the hunt with a blistering half-century.

Reflecting on the team’s readiness and the takeaways from the practice matches, Harmanpreet emphasised that the fighting spirit shown by the team has instilled immense belief in the dugout.

“We are really looking forward to that (Pakistan match). These two practice games have given us a lot of confidence and even today, even though we lost the game, but how Richa batted and I think that’s a big positive for us,” Harmapreet said after the match. 

While the bowlers put up a disciplined show and Ghosh top-scored with a valiant knock, India’s top and middle-order failed to convert their starts. Five Indian batters crossed into double digits but failed to construct a substantial partnership to cross the finish line.

Harmanpreet didn’t shy away from addressing this loophole, urging her batting unit to step up and forge crucial stands in the middle overs.

“It’s about partnerships and I think we missed the chance and only Richa and a few other players were there to get a few partnerships. In T20 cricket, if you want to win you have to get a few partnerships in the middle overs and today we missed that,” she continued. 

Despite the minor bump against England, the Indian skipper believes the team is peaking at the right time. The focus now completely shifts to Birmingham, where a high-voltage clash against Pakistan awaits. Harmanpreet reiterated that the ultimate goal is to unleash an aggressive brand of cricket when they take the field on Sunday, June 14. 

“That’s a big belief that if we stay on the pitch, we can turn the game anytime and I think these two (warm-up) games have given a lot of confidence and hopefully we’ll play our fearless cricket on our first game,” she concluded. 

India are included in Group A of the competition alongside Australia, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Pakistan, and South Africa.