Mandhana has been appointed as India's all-format captain, succeeding Kaur.
Former India captain Anjum Chopra stated that Smriti Mandhana should carve out her own leadership style rather than trying to replicate or step into the shoes of her predecessor, Harmanpreet Kaur.
Following a formal change of guard in Indian women's cricket, Anjum highlighted that Mandhana possesses ample experience—having led India in standalone series as early as 2019 and successfully guiding the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to multiple Women's Premier League (WPL) titles—to successfully chart her own territory across all formats.
Mandhana has been appointed as India's all-format captain, succeeding Kaur, who stepped down after nearly 10 years in the role.
The appointment was finalized during a review meeting in Guwahati, attended by Mandhana, Kaur, women’s team head coach Amol Muzumdar, and BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia.
Her first assignment as full-time captain will be a home bilateral series against Zimbabwe, starting October 16 with three T20Is in Raipur.
"Smriti does not need to step into Harman's shoes at all. She has experience leading India. The Guwahati games against England in 2019 were the first time she captained the team and, fortunately, she has had more time in a leadership role prior to becoming full-time captain than Harman or anyone else had.
"Smriti can chart her own territory. The challenges the Indian team currently faces are well known, and I am sure Smriti is aware of them. Her biggest challenge will be addressing those gaps, whether in T20Is or ODIs, and building on where the team has reached. All these players - Deepti, Smriti, Jemimah - reached this pedestal together. Now it's about taking it to the next level.
"It's like passing a baton in a relay: Smriti collected it cleanly while already on the run, so she has a head start. How that head start gets converted is how she will be measured in the present and future. How she uses her captaincy experience and her familiarity with this group, as well as the players coming in, to be the leader everyone looks up to for answers is what she will be judged on," Anjum told IANS.
She emphasized that Mandhana does not need to follow Harmanpreet’s approach. Instead, the opening batter should combine her 12 to 13 years of international playing experience with lessons from past leaders to build her unique legacy.
"If you weren't looking for a change, why did the change happen? I don't expect Smriti to be a clone of Harman, and nobody should be a clone. You take the best parts of every leader, bring them forward, and make them your own. Smriti has been around the Indian team for a long time now.
"She doesn't need to clone Harman; she needs to build on everything she has learned playing for India over the last 12 to 13 years. She has captaincy experience, high skill levels, and world travel under her belt. She knows the conditions and the opposition across the globe.
"The next step for her is deciding what takeaways to imbibe into her own decision-making and how to push the team forward. If every captain is identical and uses the same template, there is no need for change.
"No captain should be the same. They need to elevate the team beyond where it was when they received the baton, ensuring that by the time the next person takes over, the team has reached greater heights. That is how the sport progresses, and that is how players grow individually," Anjum explained.
Anjum Chopra believes the team will adapt to the change in leadership through a gentle transition allowed by a series with lower stakes.
"It's not going to be simple for any player to adapt to that change. The good thing is the Indian team will have a little time to settle in, and I assume there will be a camp before the series starts.
"This series isn't against a world No. 1 side where tension is running high, so the players will have space and time to adjust. People in that dressing room will quickly realise they have to look in a different direction for instructions and guidance. Nobody needs to play the elder sister; everyone knows each other well enough, and the players will adapt as they always do.
"While you have different setups across formats, the captain remains the same for the T20I and ODI sides. How everyone shapes up moving toward the ICC Champions Trophy in India will be closely measured. Everyone has to start defining their own pathway. While the captain makes the ultimate decisions, every player in this team must understand their individual role before they step onto that path collectively," she remarked.
Anjum also discussed Mandhana's readiness to captain the Indian women's cricket team, highlighting how her experience leading the RCB to a couple of WPL titles has groomed her for the role.
"When you become a full-time leader and start captaining the Indian team, it's the experiences you dwell upon. Smriti has built up a good amount of experience over the years. The WPL is a prime example. When you lead a franchise team in your own country and win titles, you learn a lot about yourself.
"She has had very good grooming to become a leader. That's why those statements came out saying she's ready for the captaincy. Someone without that background wouldn't say that; they'd simply say, 'I'm looking forward to the challenge.' The language and preparation change when you're ready.
"How she comes out as the leader of the Indian team is something we will all see. Whatever happened in the past is done. Now the job is clearly defined: you are the captain of the Indian team. What you make of it - the decisions, the preparation, the process - will be what we start analysing and measuring from here," concluded Anjum.
(With IANS Inputs)