Harmanpreet Kaur’s India eye Asian Games gold repeat as they face Sri Lanka in the final

Nisshin: Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur, right, Kranti Gaud, center and Gunalan Kamalini celebrate (PTI Photo) Nagoya: With the Asian Games nearly three weeks away, the Indian women’s cricket team has been given a one-week window and three matches to clinch the title.With cricket still relatively unknown in the region, the players were able to explore the city and its surroundings without attracting attention, from visiting Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Kyoto, Japan’s cultural capital, to walking the streets of Nagoya. They sampled local food, shopped and even found a taste of home in a Japanese Indian restaurant.At the Karogi Athletics Park cricket facility on the outskirts of the city, teams like Japan and Malaysia rushed to meet the Indian cricketers. For many of them, meeting icons like captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana is a dream come true. The Indian diaspora also appeared in large numbers.Amidst all the new experiences, they didn’t lose focus on the job at hand: to keep the gold.India hardly broke a sweat in the run-up to the final. However, Sri Lanka can be tricky customers despite India beating them in the Asia Cup less than two weeks ago.The battle for the gold will be a repeat of the final of the previous edition in which India edged out the Lankans by 19 runs in a low-scoring final.That said, Sri Lanka were in top form en route to the final, registering wins against Malaysia and Pakistan. Captain Chamari Athapaththu led from the front with 146 runs from two matches, including two half-centuries. The 36-year-old cricketer would be keen to make amends for his T20 World Cup group stage exit and second place finish in Asia.While the fancy Indians won’t settle for anything but gold, they don’t take the opposition lightly.“Chamari is in good form. We know she is one of their best players so we have plans for her. That means we will just try to execute our own plans,” opener Shafali Verma said.Rain is in the forecast so both teams will also be watching the weather. If the match is abandoned, India, who are the best seeds, will be declared the winners.