Anjum looks for fruitful preparation

Elated veteran batswoman Anjum Chopra said she would do everything she can to make a difference when the 15-member Indian women’s squad heads to the West Indies later this month.

The 34-year-old southpaw, who returns to international circuit after a gap of three years, replaced pacer Jhulan Goswami at the helm for the series (two ODIs and five T20s) which starts on February 18. Jhulan remains in the squad.

“It is great to be back in the team and this is a very good team,” said Anjum during a press conference at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Sunday. “I feel the job bestowed upon me is a great one and I am humbled. This responsibility is huge and I really hope to deliver to the best of my ability.”

When asked about how different it would be to lead the Indian line-up once again, the all-rounder said: “The only difference would be that the woman sitting next to me (former skipper and now head coach Anju Jain) was my fellow opener when I last played (but) now she dons a different role. Back then, Jhulan and Mithali (Raj) just about got into the team, but now things have changed.”

The Indian eves, who lock horns with the Merissa Aguilleira-led Windies starting in Antigua, had posted a 3-2 win over the Caribbeans last year, but Anjum said they would approach the ‘improved’ side with caution while focusing on the upcoming World T20 to be held in Sri Lanka.

“The target as of now is the upcoming tour of the West Indies. We are not looking beyond that at this point in time because we believe in taking it one step at a time.

“But having said that our main goal is to be prepared enough for the World T20. This tour provides us with the perfect chance to go out there and work on our shortcomings ahead of the T20,” Anjum remarked.

“The team is a well-balanced one. It has a good mixture of old and new, and that always makes for a good combination. It will give youngsters a chance to gain some experience as well.”

Anju seconded Anjum’s views: “This is going to be a good series. The series we played last time was different from the one we are going to play now. Windies are an improved side. The World T20 is about five-six months away and we are headed in the right direction,” said the veteran.

Team: Anjum Chopra (capt), Mithali Raj (vice-capt), Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur, Veda Krishnamurthy, Subhalaxmi Sharma, Diana David, Sunith Anand, Gouhar Sultana, Mamtha Kanojia, Archana Das, Ekta Bist, Amita Sharma, Madhuri Mehta, Sulakshna Naik. Coach: Anju Jain.

Schedule: ODIs: Feb 29: Jamaica; March 2: Jamaica; Mar 4: Jamaica.
T20s: February 18: Antigua; Feb 19: Antigua; Feb 22: Dominica; Feb 23: Dominica; Feb 27: Jamaica.