Harmanpreet Kaur steps down as India women's captain in all three formats

Harmanpreet Kaur, long-time captain of the Indian women's cricket team, stepped down as captain in all three formats on Tuesday. She said she had done her duty as a leader and was now "ready to play again for the love of the game".

Her announcement came after a BCCI review meeting in Guwahati. The meeting was called to assess the team's journey over the past few months. It was chaired by BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia. Vice-captain Smriti Mandhana and head coach Amol Muzumdar were also present along with Harmanpreet.

Harmanpreet, 37, took over the captaincy in 2016 and led the Indian T20 team for a full decade. She was given the ODI captaincy in 2022 and became captain in all three formats in 2023.

In a post on her Instagram account, she wrote, "Today I am stepping down as captain of the Indian women's cricket team in all formats."

In a long statement, Harmanpreet said, "This decision is not easy. It carries years of memories, emotions, sacrifices and moments that will stay with me for life."

She added, "Now I am ready to play again for the love of the game. Captaincy ends. The journey continues."

Under Harmanpreet's captaincy, India won their first ODI World Cup last November. The team also recently won the Asian Games gold in T20 for the second consecutive time. Harmanpreet said she was leaving the captaincy "with a lot of emotions in my heart, but with peace".

Concluding her statement, she said, "Because I truly believe my team is in a good place."