India women's cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur during a session with actor Mandira Bedi at Goafest 2026.
PANAJI
At Goafest 2026, Indian women’s cricket captain Harmanpreet Kaur joined actor, anchor and fitness enthusiast Mandira Bedi for an interesting conversation titled “Resetting the limits of what’s possible”.
The session opened with Bedi asking Harmanpreet what “reset” means when a match is slipping away, the scoreboard is tightening and the pressure feels unbearable.
“Reset for me is coming back to the present moment. No matter how fast the game gets, just talking to yourself and focusing on breathing always helps,” she said.
Kaur reflected on her nearly two-decade journey, tracing the roots of her composure to a childhood in Punjab that coincided with the modern era of commercial endorsements and sold-out stadiums. She recalled learning the game by batting with a makeshift wooden plank alongside her father and brother.
“I don’t remember dreaming about anything except cricket,” she said. “I only remember asking my father for a bat and telling him one day I wanted to wear the India jersey.”
At that time, she did not even know women’s cricket existed professionally. She simply knew she wanted to play.
The turning point came after her Class 10 examinations, during the months she spent waiting for her results. A cricket coach noticed her talent while she was playing with boys and offered to open his academy to girls if she wanted to join. Until then, coaches had approached her for other sports, but never cricket.
“He was the first person who asked me if I wanted to seriously play cricket,” she recalled. “The next day, I shifted to his school and joined the academy.”
The rest, as they say, is history.
Harmanpreet went on to debut for India in 2009 against Pakistan.
The conversation naturally gravitated towards Kaur’s historic, unbeaten 171-run knock against Australia in the semi-final of the 2017 Women's World Cup — a performance widely recognised as a turning point for the sport in India.
"That day, I was just batting; I was only trying to help my country win," Kaur said with a smile, reflecting on the simplicity of the moment.
She noted that the true impact of her knock only became apparent upon her return to India. "When we came back from England, I saw little girls in cricket whites carrying kits in my city for the first time. That’s when I realised the impact."
The impact went beyond inspiration. It changed economics, visibility and ambition around the women’s game. Stadiums started filling up. Broadcasters started investing. Sponsors began paying attention. And eventually, the Women’s Premier League arrived.
Harmanpreet admitted she became emotional seeing the first WPL season unfold with packed crowds and large-scale production.
“We always dreamed of seeing stadiums full for women’s cricket,” she said. “After the 2017 World Cup, we knew if the WPL happened, women’s cricket could change completely.”
Harmanpreet credited the league and the trust shown by administrators and stakeholders for accelerating the team’s confidence and eventually helping India secure a major ICC title. “When somebody shows trust in you, you want to deliver,” she said. “That trust changed women’s cricket.”
The discussion also revisited India’s recent ICC triumph, particularly the nerve-shredding semi-final chase against Australia. Harmanpreet described how calmness became the team’s greatest weapon after losing early wickets.
She recalled conversations with teammates during the innings, emphasising how the focus remained only on the next few overs rather than the enormity of the target. “We kept telling ourselves, just keep batting, don’t think too far ahead,” she said. “That calmness helped us.”
Harmanpreet also spoke about her leadership style. Asked how she mentors younger players entering the dressing room, she spoke about removing fear rather than demanding perfection.
“Don’t be afraid of making mistakes,” she said. “Mistakes are normal. What matters is how quickly you learn from them.”
In a hyper-scrutinised Indian cricket culture where every captaincy decision faces relentless analysis across media channels and social media networks, Kaur appeared remarkably unaffected by outside noise.
"What people think doesn’t pay the bills, and what people think doesn’t win matches,” Kaur stated, thereby making the sharpest statement of the evening.
Asked what she might have become had cricket not worked out, Harmanpreet answered, “Footballer or golfer.”
The evening concluded on a lighter note with a rapid-fire segment, where Kaur revealed her love for Punjabi music before matches, admitted she travels with a golf kit, named Harleen Deol and Shafali Verma as the funniest teammates, and confessed that chole bhature remains her ultimate cheat meal.
When asked by Bedi to define a true champion, Kaur concluded with immediate clarity, "Someone who never gives up."
