"This tournament is very important...": India skipper Harmanpreet ahead of Women's T20 Asia Cup 2024

Dambulla [Sri Lanka], July 18 (ANI): Ahead of the Women's T20 Asia Cup 2024, India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur said on Thursday that the tournament is very important for them.
Harmanpreet Kaur-led Team India will take on their arch-rivals Pakistan on the opening day of the tournament at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium.
The inaugural match of the Women's T20 Asia Cup 2024 will be played between UAE and Nepal. Sri Lanka will begin its journey on July 20 against Bangladesh.
Speaking at the pre-tournament press conference, Harmanpreet said that they always give equal respect to the Women's T20 Asia Cup since it will help their cricket at the international level.
"This tournament is very important for all of us to prepare ourselves for the T20 World Cup. But at the same time, we always give equal respect to this tournament, because if you do well in an Asian tournament, you'll always improve your cricket at the world level," Harmanpreet said.
She added that the Women's T20 Asia Cup 2024 will help them prepare for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
"So, I think this tournament is equally important for us and our focus will remain the same, like how we prepare for the T20 World Cup or any other World Cup. So, each and every game is important for us to win and give our best," she added.
The 15-match tournament features full-member teams from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka and will be joined by Malaysia, the UAE, Thailand, and Nepal.
Pakistan and India are placed in Group A along with Nepal and the UAE, while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Thailand, and Malaysia are in Group B. The top two teams from each group will play in the semi-finals on July 26.
The final is set to be played on July 28 in Dambulla.
India's Women's Asia Cup squad: India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Uma Chetry (wk), Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Dayalan Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Sajana Sajeevan. Traveling reserves: Shweta Sehrawat, Saika Ishaque, Tanuja Kanwer, Meghna Singh. (ANI)