06 October,2026 03:06 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Harmanpreet Kaur (Pic: X/@ICC)
Team India's veteran cricketer and captain Harmanpreet Kaur has decided to step down from the captaincy role with immediate effect after more than a decade of leading the team in the role.
Following the decision, the right-handed batswoman shared a post on her official social media handle.
"Today, I step down as captain of the Indian Women's Cricket Team across all formats. This is not an easy decision. It carries years of memories, emotions, sacrifices, and moments that will stay with me for the rest of my life. Now, I'm ready to play for the love of the game again. Captaincy ends. The journey continues," read her post's caption.
After a temporary stint from 2012, she took over the captaincy in T20I cricket in 2016 and later became all-format skipper in 2022 after the departure of former captain Mithali Raj.
Her announcement came after the review meeting conducted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in Guwahati. BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, head coach Amol Muzumdar, Harmanpreet, and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana attended the meeting.
Under Harmanpreet's captaincy, Team India won the first-ever ODI World Cup in November in 2025. The "Women in Blue" also won their second Asian Games gold medal.
So far in international cricket, Harmanpreet has represented India in eight Test matches and has smashed 304 runs, with a top score of 69 runs. She also has two half-centuries to her name.
The right-handed batswoman has also featured in 164 ODI matches and has garnered 4,541 runs. Her top score in the format is an unbeaten 171 runs, including 24 half-centuries and seven tons.
The 37-year-old cricketer has donned the Indian T20I colours in 210 games. She has accumulated 4,346 runs, with the help of 18 half-centuries and a century.
Apart from her international career, she has been representing Mumbai Indians (MI) since the inception of the Women's Premier League (WPL). While she has stepped down from her captaincy duties in top-flight cricket, the Punjab-born cricketer has made no mention of the captaincy in franchise cricket.
So far, Kaur has smashed 1,193 runs in 35 appearances for the Mumbai-based franchise. She is also the second-highest run-scorer for the franchise, with Nat Sciver-Brunt enjoying the top spot with 1348 runs.
