After suffering a crushing defeat, the 33-year-old donned sunglasses for her post-match interview, claiming she didn't want her nation to witness her tears.
Former Indian skipper Anjum Chopra was seen consoling a distraught Harmanpreet Kaur after her team suffered a heartbreaking five-run defeat against Australia in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023. Chasing a total of 172 runs in Cape Town, India had been making steady progress until Kaur, who was batting on 52, was unfortunately run out in a cruel twist of fate.
After suffering a crushing defeat, the 33-year-old donned sunglasses for her post-match interview, claiming she didn't want her nation to witness her tears. Nevertheless, the Indian leader was unable to contain her emotions and broke down in tears during her conversation with Chopra.
Opening up on their interaction, Chopra told ICC “My Intention was to give the captain some empathy because that’s all I can offer from the outside. It was an emotional moment for both of us. It was a player-to-player moment with her. We were just trying to lessen our sorrows by sharing them.”
Kaur's participation in the semi-final was in serious jeopardy due to her fever, yet the Punjab-born player managed to not only make it to the playing XI, but also deliver an impressive performance under difficult conditions - coming to the crease when India were 28/3.
“Today, she might not have even played. But because it was the semi-final of a World Cup and because Harmanpreet Kaur is a player who never backs down, but charges ahead, she did just that,” Chopra said.
“She was able to bring herself to play this match and continued it while fielding by running all over the ground. The captain said I’ll go everywhere and then while batting she rekindled India’s hopes,” she concluded.
India were cruising, needing just 41 runs off 33 balls with six wickets in hand when Harmanpreet's unfortunate run-out, which had the same sinking feeling as MS Dhoni's dismissal in the 2019 Men's World Cup semi-final, took place. This pivotal moment shifted the momentum of the match, and Richa Ghosh was dismissed in the next over, yielding only one run. The required rate started climbing, and Deepti Sharma could not find the boundaries.
India crumbled under pressure once again, losing yet another knockout match to Australia in the last over by a mere five runs while chasing 173. This heartbreaking defeat was a reminder of the 2017 World Cup semi-final, where India's dreams of lifting the trophy were dashed in a similar fashion.
READ| 'If selectors feel I'm not worthy enough...': Australia star batter makes big statement on retirement plans
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Image Source: ICC")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}