Smriti Mandhana bats for mental conditioning coach ahead of big events  

CHENNAI: In less than 365 days, India women will be playing the postponed 50-over World Cup in New Zealand.

Having lost a year to the coronavirus pandemic and resuming international duties relatively late — six months after many countries kick-started their sporting activities — mean Mithali Raj & Co will have to make use of every opportunity in their road to the Cup.

From identifying the core players to zeroing in on a settled unit to fine-tuning their skills after a prolonged break, they have work to do. But those are not the only aspects they should keep in mind while preparing for the World Cup which will be followed by Commonwealth Games.

The pattern of their losses in their last two World Cup finals in 2017 and 2019 have not been because of their skill set. The collapse at the Lord's against England when they narrowly missed out on the maiden world title four years ago and the Melbourne meltdown last year have only made call for a mental conditioning coach louder ahead of a big-ticket event. Former national coach Tushar Arothe openly said after the 2017 defeat that the team needs to hire a mental conditioning coach while India's T20 captain Harmanpreet Kaur also echoed her views in late 2019, saying they have put in a request for the same to the BCCI.

Under the current circumstances, where players and support staff are confined to bio-secure bubbles during a series and considering that the situation might not drastically change in the immediate future due to the pandemic, the question of hiring a mental conditioning coach becomes more relevant. Though the India women's team have never worked with such a coach, opener Smriti Mandhana on Thursday said a lot of players would benefit if the board hires someone.

"Well, at the moment, I think the girls are in a very good space," Mandhana, who has played four World Cups across formats, said on the eve of the third ODI against South Africa in Lucknow.
"First of all, we have come off a long break and everyone is feeling really fresh and just want to go out there and play some good cricket. But definitely, a mental conditioning coach or a mentor could be of benefit for a lot of girls. And definitely, the BCCI is looking into it and hopefully, we will have something (someone) before the World Cup."

Lack of big-match temperament and inability to perform under pressure are two things that have hurt the team at crucial junctures. Moving forward, they wouldn't want these to hinder their quest for a maiden ICC title.