In a recent media interaction, star Indian opener Smriti Mandhana has stated India are not just among the strongest contenders for the Women’s T20 World Cup but the youngsters in the team also make them the happiest team in the tournament.
Notably, the average age of the Indian side is 23. Prior to their tournament-opening encounter against Australia at Sydney on Friday, Mandhana shared that perhaps it is only debutants Thailand who can give them tough competition when it comes to having fun both on and off the field.
“This group really knows how to have fun. It’s about making the young players feel comfortable and I’ve become one with them. We have a lot of dances, a lot of singing and a lot of things that happen,” Mandhana was quoted as saying by the ICC.
“I think we’re the happiest team at the World Cup – although Thailand might give us some competition,” she added.
“You can think of the vibe if you see the age of our team. With that kind of age group, there has to be fun and if there’s no fun there’s something wrong with the girls.
“It’s been like that for the last one or two years. I won’t say it wasn’t like that in the years before but since the teenagers have come, there is a different energy,” said the 23-year-old Mandhana, who will be responsible for giving India good starts throughout the tournament.
“Young players come into it with fresh thinking, they don’t have anything behind them. They know nothing. They’re very different people to we were when we came into the side at 17.
“They are very fearless, they don’t have a lot of pressure on them,” she concluded.