Harmanpreet Kaur becomes first cricketer to captain in 150 T20I matches

Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur (Image: IANS)

Harmanpreet Kaur created history on Saturday as she became the first cricketer, male or female, to captain in 150 T20I matches. The India captain reached the landmark during the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 Group A clash against Pakistan in Dubai. India have already secured their place in the semifinals and will be aiming to complete the group stage with a perfect three wins from three. Harmanpreet, who has been one of the defining figures in India’s T20I history, now sits comfortably at the top of the list for most matches as captain in the format. Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu is second with 121 matches, followed by Australia’s Meg Lanning on 100 and England’s Heather Knight and Rwanda’s Diane Bimenyimana on 96 each.

Most matches as captain in Women’s T20Is

150* - Harmanpreet Kaur (IND-W)

121 - Chamari Athapaththu (SL-W)

100 - Meg Lanning (AUS-W)

96 - Heather Knight (ENG-W)

96 - Diane Bimenyimana (RWA-W)

Reflecting on the milestone, Harmanpreet played down the significance of the number and stressed the importance of continuing to enjoy her cricket. “Great achievement. But the key is to keep enjoying yourself on the field, and that is a key. I try to keep up with that,” Harmanpreet said when asked about leading India for the 150th time in T20Is.

Harmanpreet leaves Dhoni and men’s captains far behind

Harmanpreet’s landmark also puts her well ahead of the leading men’s captains in T20I cricket. Namibia’s Gerhard Erasmus currently holds the men’s record with 91 matches as captain, For India, former captain MS Dhoni has led the team in the most men’s T20Is, with 72 matches as captain, placing him ninth overall on the list.

Pakistan opt to bat first against India

Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Fatima Sana won the toss and elected to bat first against India. Pakistan are looking for their second group-stage victory after beating Thailand in their opening match.

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India, meanwhile, enter the contest on the back of comprehensive wins over Thailand and Hong Kong.India XI: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Bharti Fulmali, Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Prema Rawat, Nandani Sharma, Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud.Pakistan XI: Muneeba Ali (wk), Shawaal Zulfiqar, Gull Feroza, Ayesha Zafar, Sadaf Shamas, Fatima Sana (c), Umm-e-Hani, Eyman Fatima, Tuba Hassan, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal.

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