“I’m really blessed to have witnessed this Test match”: Amol Muzumdar

 

 

Fresh off India’s historic victory over England Women at Lord’s, India women’s head coach Amol Muzumdar joined Backstage with Boria to reflect on the special triumph and the emotions that came with it. He spoke about the significance of bouncing back so quickly from the disappointment of the T20 World Cup 2026 and the character the team showed in doing so.

Looking ahead, the coach shared the team’s plans for the coming months, including those for the Asian Games, the importance of taking a well-earned break, and how he intends to get the white-ball team back on track for the Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka.

Boria: Red-ball cricket is always special. Tell me a bit about your feelings after this Test match win at Lord’s.

Amol: It’s 13th July, the same day many years back when Sourav Ganguly’s team won the NatWest Trophy final, and now Harmanpreet Kaur’s team did the honours. I’m really blessed to have witnessed this Test match. It’s been a historic one.

About a couple of seasons back, we were having a chat on your podcast where we said that the highlight of the season was the World Cup, but not to forget, there is a Test match at Lord’s. And here we are, at the end of the fourth day of the Lord’s Test match, with a spectacular win. For me, the World Cup was very important and I know there was frustration and disappointment, but for me, red-ball cricket is something special.

Boria: As coach, what was the message to the girls after the [T20] World Cup?

Amol: I will be very candid about it, that we were disappointed. The girls had put in a lot of hard yards and we genuinely believed that we would go all the way. So that is why the World Cup was a bit of a disappointment. But international cricket is at such a stage that it doesn’t allow you to dwell too much on the past. It was my job, and my support staff’s, to make the squad realise that yes, the disappointment is there, but at the same time, you’ve got something else to look forward to. And we came out of it with the leadership group.

We made sure that everyone stayed in a healthy frame of mind so that we could shift our focus from white-ball cricket to red-ball cricket immediately. And just the momentous occasion that we were playing a Test match at Lord’s made it more special.

Boria: Can you tell me a little bit about the mentality of these youngsters like Kranti Gaud and Yastika Bhatia?

Amol: It is only 13 months since Kranti has been playing international cricket, but she has taken international cricket in her stride. There are a lot of youngsters who are coming through, and that is a very good sign for Indian cricket. I was really impressed by the controlled line and length that she showed with the red ball. I was also impressed with her sense of occasion.

Somebody from a deep interior part of Madhya Pradesh, playing at Lord’s for the first time, announcing herself in front of a superb crowd at Lord’s and not being overwhelmed by the situation or the ambience. Just trying to focus on her bowling. I think that’s why Indian cricket has got a lot of depth in it.

Boria: Yastika Bhatia, who got injured at the last moment and missed out on a victorious home World Cup. What did it mean to her?

Amol: It was cruel at the time when she got injured at the last minute. It was just before the World Cup. Cricket is such a beautiful game that it has got its own ways of rewarding certain players who are true and honest to the game. And Yastika is one of them. I always keep telling her that she has been a terrific student of the game, also very diligent in her work. Her work ethic is fantastic. She has got her own routines to follow. And she has been the kind of girl who has always stayed positive throughout the campaign. And even during the World Cup, when she missed out on the 50-over World Cup, we asked her to come and watch the final. She came to watch with that broken leg of hers.

Boria: What does this win mean to captain Harmanpreet Kaur?

Amol: It means a lot to her. A lot to every one of us. If you see the record in the last three years that I’ve been involved, I can vouch for that period only. We have played five Test matches. We have won four. Except Australia. We lost at Perth, and now we’ve won at Lord’s. So, yes, it is a topsy-turvy world. We didn’t have the best of World Cups but, at the same time, to get the team back on track, to fight back, is a hallmark of good character. And I think the team showed good character in this.

Boria: In two and a half years, you can boast about winning a World Cup on home soil and a red-ball Test match that was played for the first time ever at Lord’s. You must feel blessed beyond words. Tell me about yourself.

Amol: I would not wish to. That’s not my style of working. I feel very blessed. Even today, when I called my dad, he mentioned, “Yeah, you’ve won. But you’ve got a few more things to do. Just stay humble about it.” That was the message from my parents as well, so that’s how I’ve been brought up. And it will always remain that way. I feel blessed that I’ve got this bunch of cricketers around me and there were certain other things that were written. Ten years back, I never would have imagined that I would be in this position, nor did I expect it. So I always believe in the Almighty. And I believe He’s got his own ways of dealing with things.

Boria: What’s next for Amol Muzumdar? What’s the plan?

Amol: The plan is to take the next flight back home [laughs]. I’ve been away from my family for two months. And my daughter, of course, she’s following it. She’ll be going away to university now, so I would like to spend some time with her. And cricket-wise, I think I will take a break. Everyone will have a break, except for the four players who are playing in The Hundred. The rest of them can take a break for about 15–20 days and we’ll be back on track, working hard at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. The programme is always set for the next three months. I’ve always believed in that. So next will be preparing ourselves for the Asia Cup and the Asian Games.

Just one last message to everyone who’s watching this. Have a big smile on your faces. We love to bring smiles to everyone’s face in India. If you’re an Indian cricket fan, you should be smiling at the moment.

Boria: Thank you very much.

 

(Transcribed by Divyasree De)

Watch the full interview here

 

The post “I’m really blessed to have witnessed this Test match”: Amol Muzumdar appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.



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