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Harmanpreet invites young mascot into team huddle in heartfelt move before WC semifinal

Akshita Patel

Team India does sweet gesture for mascot [Source: Screengrab from Jiohotstar]Team India does sweet gesture for mascot [Source: Screengrab from Jiohotstar]

Just before India’s much-awaited Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final vs Australia, captain Harmanpreet Kaur showed her compassionate side. She invited a young team mascot to join the players’ pre-match huddle. 

Australia Women won the toss and opted to bat first. Before the proceedings began at Navi Mumbai, both sides walked out for the national anthem with young mascots accompanying them.

Young girl gives pep to Team India for World Cup semi-final

Meanwhile, India Women's captain Harmanpreet Kaur stopped one young mascot and invited her into the team huddle. She asked her to give a pep talk, and the whole team cheered for her.

The heartwarming moment went viral on social media as fans loved the team’s compassion for a young mascot who will perhaps remember this moment for the rest of her life.

That being said, the stakes are high for India. They face arch-nemesis Australia in a World Cup semi-final that is being held on home soil.

The stage can’t get any bigger than this, and hence, pressure will hover over Team India. Interestingly, the host team had a great start, dismissing opposition skipper Alyssa Healy on 5 off 15 balls. 

Despite Harmanpreet Kaur dropping a catch early on, Healy didn’t cause much trouble, which is a good sign. 

Before the rain stopped play in Navi Mumbai, Australia had 25 runs on the board at the loss of 1 wicket.

India’s catching misery continues in the Women’s World Cup 2025

One annoying habit of India Women in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 is their sloppy fielding. The team have now dropped 17 catches, a concerning tally that indicates how poor they are in the field.

With a catching efficiency of just 65.3%, India ranks seventh out of eight teams, raising serious questions about their fielding standards at the international level.