In a historic moment for Indian women’s cricket, 36-year-old batting all-rounder and current skipper Harmanpreet Kaur has equaled Australian legend Meg Lanning’s record of 76 victories in 129 Women’s T20I matches as captain.
This milestone came during India’s commanding 7-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the second T20I of their ongoing five-match bilateral series at Visakhapatnam on December 23, 2025, putting the hosts 2-0 up. Kaur joins Lanning, who retired from international cricket in November 2023 after achieving the feat in just 100 matches, underscoring her longevity and consistency at the helm.
Harmanpreet Kaur’s captaincy journey began with a bang on October 31, 2012, leading India to an 18-run victory over Pakistan in the ACC Women’s Asia Cup final at Guangzhou. Appointed full-time T20I skipper in October 2016, succeeding Mithali Raj, she has guided India to semi-finals in the 2018 (West Indies) and 2023 (South Africa) ICC Women’s T20 World Cups, plus a maiden final appearance in 2020 (Australia).
Setbacks include the 2018 semi-final loss to England by 8 wickets at North Sound, an 85-run final defeat to Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground in 2020, a 5-run semi-final heartbreak against Australia at Cape Town in 2023, and a 9-run league-stage loss to Australia at Sharjah in 2024 that ended semi-final hopes. New Zealand, under Sophie Devine, won that edition.
As T20I skipper, Kaur boasts 2,749 runs in 117 innings across 129 matches at a strike rate of 114.97 and an average of 31.23, including 12 half-centuries and a century. Her standout batting knock came on November 9, 2018, smashing 103 off 51 balls (7 fours, 8 sixes) against New Zealand at Providence Stadium, Guyana, in the World Cup opener, India won by 34 runs, earning her Player of the Match.
With the ball, she claimed 19 wickets in 41 innings at 25.68 average and 6.39 economy, her best being 3/11 in 3 overs against Thailand on June 4, 2018, at Kuala Lumpur (India won by 66 runs), earning her the Player of the Match accolades.
Overall, in T20Is since her debut on June 11, 2009, against England at Taunton, Kaur has amassed 3,679 runs in 164 innings (108.04 strike rate, 28.74 average) with 14 half-centuries and a century, plus 32 wickets in 62 innings (24.84 average, 6.27 economy), her best 4/23 against West Indies at Mohali in the 2016 World Cup. She recently notched her 350th international appearance in the first T20I of this series, becoming the first Indian and second overall after Suzie Bates to reach the mark.
Harmanpreet Kaur stands as India’s most successful T20I captain (men or women) with 76 wins, ahead of Rohit Sharma’s 49 in 62 matches; she also holds the most runs by an Indian T20I skipper (2,749), surpassing Sharma’s 1,905.
Her leadership peaked with India’s maiden senior-level ICC title: the 13th Women’s ODI World Cup in 2025, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. India thrashed South Africa by 52 runs in the November 2 final at DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai, under head coach.
In the tournament, she scored 260 runs in 8 innings (89.04 strike rate, 32.50 average) with two half-centuries, including a gritty 89 off 88 (10 fours, 2 sixes) in the semi-final chase of 339 against Australia at DY Patil on October 30. Jemimah Rodrigues’ unbeaten 127 (134 balls, 14 fours) sealed a 5-wicket win with 9 balls spare, her maiden World Cup ton earning Player of the Match.
Harmanpreet Kaur trails only Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu (2,883 runs in 101 innings/102 matches) for most runs as Women’s T20I skipper; in men’s cricket, Babar Azam leads with 2,642. With the series poised at 2-0, the third T20I set for December 26 at Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram (7 PM IST), and eyes on the 10th ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in England and Wales (June 12-July 5, 2026), Kaur eyes Lanning’s record outright.
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