Harmanpreet Kaur stunned as India suffer defeat in Women's T20 World Cup opener: 'Not the start we had anticipated'

India was handed a harsh lesson in their Women's T20 World Cup 2024 opener as they suffered a heavy 58-run defeat against Sophie Devine's New Zealand in Dubai. The Indian batting order faltered while chasing 161, with Harmanpreet managing to score the highest of just 15 runs off 14 balls.

Rosemary Mair took a four-wicket haul as New Zealand bowled out India for 102 in 19 overs. Meanwhile, Lea Tahuhu took two wickets, Eden Carson bagged two dismissals.

Speaking after her side's defeat, India captain Harmanpreet appeared to be shellshocked and admitted that it 'wasn't the start' her side was expecting.

"We didn't play our best cricket today. Going forward we have to think what areas we have to improve. Every game now is important and we have to play our best cricket. We created chances, it's not like that we didn't create. They played better cricket than us, no doubt about that. This is such a high stage where you can't make these mistakes," she said.

"We have chased 160-170 many times. But on that pitch .. it was 10-15 runs too many. At one stage, the way they started, I was thinking it would be 180. This wasn't the start we were expecting (in this tournament)," she added.

The match began with New Zealand captain Devine winning the toss and opting to bat. Suzie Bates (27) and Georgia Plimmer (34) gave New Zealand a strong start, and then Devine's unbeaten half-century (57* off 36 balls) wrapped up the first innings, as they reached 160/4.

After the match, Devine hailed her teammates for a strong start. "I'm just incredibly proud of this group. To put together such a comprehensive performance is something I'm proud of. We've been targetting this game for a long time now. We take inspiration from the Black Caps as well. If you look at our powerplay, we've been getting some terrific starts. That's what we wanted today - to put the pressure on the bowlers. We spoke about 150 being par. Pleased to get 10 runs above that. Probably know them too well having played them recently. But it's always a big challenge playing Australia," she said.