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Newsmaker: Harmanpreet Kaur, sports icon and spirited captain
Harmanpreet Kaur is the face of a fresh, exciting India women’s T20 cricket team full of teenagers who play the game with a swagger, sharp skills and a great sense of joy
Moga is a small town in Punjab that has, in the past, produced several personalities – a Sikh leader, a Bollywood actor, a Punjab chief minister and also one of India’s leading freedom fighters. But Moga wasn’t really home to sporting talent until, in 2017, a girl born within its boundaries showed what she could do with the cricket bat during a 50-over World Cup match in England. And just like that, Moga was on the international cricket map.
In the semi-final of the women’s World Cup against Australia in 2017, Harmanpreet Kaur Bhullar did more than just make Moga famous for cricket. She also made the world sit up and notice the women’s game, after her knock of 171 runs ended up taking India to the final.
Even though India lost that final to England at Lord’s – a thriller that was a true advertisement for the game – journalists from all over the country descended upon Moga on Harman’s return.
What followed in the years to come was a whirlwind of stardom, endorsements, an Arjuna Award and captaincy of the Indian cricket team. There were controversies too, but with her unique on-field swagger and achievements, Harman had established herself as the face of the sport. “Harman was always different. She would hit big sixes. Attack the bowlers. Take mind blowing catches. A livewire on the field,” says former India captain Anjum Chopra. “And what her knock of 171 against Australia did to the sport is extraordinary. She scored those runs with an injured finger and in great pain.”
Coaxed into hockey at a young age, it is said that Harman told her father, Harmander Singh, a clerk in the local district court, that she wanted to swap the stick for a bat.
“She always had a spark when it came to cricket. She would play against boys and even smash them around the park,” says her father, who now lives in a big house in Moga, which his daughter built for her parents in 2014.
The nearby Gian Jyoti Public School in Moga also played an important role in Harman’s upbringing. The principal of the school, Kamaleesh Sodhi, spotted Harman at a local ground and decided to give her a platform to bloom, free of cost. She then graduated to the state team of Punjab, and two seasons later she was in the Indian team.
“Harman was nervous coming into the team from a small town,” says former India pacer, Amita Sharma, who now coaches the Delhi women’s team. “But look at her confidence now. She is doing well as a captain. She has the faith of all team members and leads from the front.”
Harman became the first Indian cricketer, male or female, to be roped in by a foreign T20 league, when as many as three Women’s Big Bash League teams came calling to sign the aggressive middle order bat in 2015. She ended up with the inaugural champions, Sydney Thunder.
Months later, the T20 captain became the first Indian to sign up with Surrey Stars for the second edition of ECB’s Women’s Cricket League.
But just when life couldn’t get any better for Harman, the ugly side of fame struck. In 2018, she had a much publicised spat with Tushar Arothe, the then coach of the women’s team, which led to Arothe’s resignation just before the T20 World Cup in the West Indies. Things got even worse during that tournament in the Caribbean, when it was reported that Harman, along with new coach, Ramesh Powar, had a falling out with ODI captain, Mithali Raj, which led to Raj being dropped from the playing eleven for the semi-finals.
Yet Harman turned it around; the team she has built as a captain is young, spirited, and play their cricket with a joy and confidence never seen before. It is a team built in her image. Despite failing with the bat herself, she has taken the team to another T20 World Cup semi-final without losing a single match en route.
“She is a real role model,” says all-rounder Harleen Deol, who is part of the Indian team taking part in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia. “She gives space to everyone and lets the player play freely.”
ON SOLID GROUND
Harman’s favourite cricketer is Virender Sehwag.
She once wore the number 84 on her jersey, which her father did not approve of because it was the year of the anti-Sikh riots.
Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh has appointed Harman a deputy superintendent in the Punjab Police.
She has credited her consistency to keeping a regular diary.
