Fresh controversy has erupted after a video from the third and final T20I match between the India women’s national cricket team, the Zimbabwe women’s national cricket team and the women’s national cricket team in Raipur sparked new rumours of a rift between Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur.

Fans on social media have raised questions about Mandhana and Kaur’s interaction during the team’s post-match celebrations at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium. Earlier, ICC took action against Shafali Verma over an abuse incident.

Smriti Mandhana-Harmanpreet Kaur Rift Rumours Return

Earlier this month, Harmanpreet Kaur stepped down as India’s captain across all three formats, and the BCCI instantly named Smriti Mandhana as her successor. Soon after the captaincy change, reports claimed that the two senior players were not seeing eye to eye with each other.

And now the latest viral video has once again brought the relationship between the two senior Indian stars into the spotlight and triggered debate among fans.

Actually, the viral video suggests that Mandhana did not shake hands with the former India captain after India’s 92-run win over Zimbabwe in the final T20I in Raipur on Tuesday, October 20. As soon as India sealed the game, Kaur joyfully celebrated the win with her teammates.

She shook hands with the players, while Mandhana was seen shaking hands with her teammates, but the Indian captain was not seen having a moment with Kaur. Even when the players were returning to the dugout, Mandhana didn’t pay any heed to Kaur, while the former Indian captain can be seen distancing herself from the current skipper in Raipur.

First series win for Captain Smriti Mandhana But the main question is that is no handshake between Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur after the match, I didn't see. Would you? https://t.co/uzRailzPuD

— BackToLobby (@_backtolobby) October 20, 2026

Harmanpreet Kaur reveals secret behind her new batting mindset

Meanwhile, Harmanpreet Kaur smashed an unbeaten 91 off just 41 balls to help India seal the T20I 3-0 against Zimbabwe in Raipur. Coming in to bat in the eighth over, she started slowly but soon changed gears, smashing 20 runs off Kudzai Chigora’s over with two fours and two sixes.

After the match, Harmanpreet said that she wants to enjoy her batting without the extra pressure of captaincy. She is now focused on playing freely and making the most of her time at the crease. Amid this, WPL 2027 auction: Full player list, team purse, rules, squads and schedule.

Kaur said at the post-match presentation, “I don't think there is any pressure anymore. I think now it's all about enjoying myself on the field, and I think that's what I want to do. I definitely enjoy myself in the middle, and this is what I'm here for. I just want to enjoy my batting, and good luck with those runs."

Why did Smriti Mandhana not bat in India’s 3rd T20I against Zimbabwe?

On the other hand, Smriti Mandhana explained that rotating the batting order during the Zimbabwe series gave different players valuable time in the middle.

In the third T20I in Raipur, India batted first, but Mandhana did not come out to bat, as Anushka Sharma opened the innings alongside Shafali Verma.

Mandhana said, “In the first match we could not get going again – top order as well – then in the second match the [middle order] did not get an opportunity to bat, so it’s always good to have some game time and always good to have some runs behind your back.”