Harmanpreet Kaur to continue as India captain post T20 World Cup debacle, to lead team in Asian Games

Harmanpreet Kaur to lead India in Asian Games. Check out the full squad.

Updated on: Jun 30, 2026, 09:49:27 IST

Written by Vishesh Roy

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Harmanpreet Kaur will continue as captain of the women's team and lead the side at the upcoming Asian Games. Recently, India failed to make the semi-finals of the Women's T20 World Cup 2026, and the future of the right-handed batter was under the spotlight after the Women in Blue failed to replicate the highs of the ODI World Cup win. However, on Tuesday morning, the Women's Selection Committee ended all speculations by naming the experienced player as the captain of the women's team for the all-important Asian Games.

Harmanpreet Kaur to lead India in Asian Games. (AFP)

The 2026 Asian Games are scheduled to be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, in September 2026. The Indian women's team will head into the competition as the defending champions, having won the gold medal in women's cricket at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

Smriti Mandhana will serve as Harman's deputy, while Shreyanka Patil has also been named in the squad. However, her participation in the competition is subject to fitness clearance.

Also Read: India women's team seals qualification for 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, men's team needs to wait till December 2026

In the five matches she played in the Women's T20 World Cup, Harmanpreet scored 141 runs, and her best performance came in the final Group A match against Australia, where she played a quickfire knock of 56. However, this knock wasn't enough to help India win, and the Women in Blue crashed out of the tournament.

India started the Women's T20 World Cup with a bang, registering wins over Pakistan and the Netherlands. However, the team was given a reality check after India went down against South Africa. Heading into the game against Australia, the equation was simple: win to qualify, or else be knocked out. And as fate would have it, the 50-over champions crashed out.

Harmanpreet's future

After the loss to Australia, India head coach Amol Muzumdar was asked about Harmanpreet's future, and he said he would like to see her continue as skipper.

“It's up to the selectors to decide the captain. I think, yes, my short and sweet answer would be yes,” said Amol when asked whether he would like Harmanpreet to continue as the captain.

Before the Asian Games, India will also be playing a Test match against England at Lord's Cricket Ground. The match is scheduled to begin on July 10.

India's squad for the 2026 Asian Games: Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Smriti Mandhana (Vice-Captain), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (WK), G. Kamalini (WK), Bharti Fulmali, Sree Charani, Renuka Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil*, Radha Yadav, Nandni Sharma.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vishesh Roy
Vishesh Roy is a sports journalist with a strong focus on cricket. He began his career at Asian News International (ANI), where he covered a range of high-profile events, including the India Open, Legends Cricket League, the England–India Test series in Ahmedabad in 2021, and the inauguration of the Narendra Modi Stadium. During his tenure at ANI, he also reported extensively on domestic cricket, covering several Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy matches across the country. While cricket remains his primary beat, Vishesh has also reported on tennis, football and WWE. After a stint of over three years at ANI, Vishesh moved to NDTV, where he gained hands-on experience in digital-first journalism, with a particular emphasis on live blogs and real-time news reporting. He joined Hindustan Times in October 2024 and quickly established himself with a series of exclusive interviews and source-driven stories. Ahead of the IPL 2025 auction, Hindustan Times was the first to report that the two-day event would be held in Saudi Arabia. In the early months of his tenure, Vishesh secured interviews with leading cricketers, including Pat Cummins, Shreyas Iyer, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Rashid Latif. He has also closely tracked the rise of emerging talents such as Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Priyansh Arya by speaking to their current and childhood coaches. His background in on-field reporting has helped Hindustan Times Digital break exclusive stories on major developments, including Virat Kohli’s return to the Ranji and Vijay Hazare Trophy, IPL scheduling, and the T20 World Cup controversy involving Bangladesh and Pakistan.Read More

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