This is all about youngest cricketer to play in a Women's Twenty20 International match for India
Author:- Ashwin Jangam (Cricket Analyst, host, poet, entertainer)
Insta I'd:- cricket_creativity
In the year 1989, a teenage boy made his debut for India. In just a matter of time, the boy became a household name due to his amazing display of batting. The boy went on to rule the cricketing world becoming the best batsman to have ever played the game in his career spanning over two decades. The name of that boy is Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.
A teenage prodigy turning into a sensation and legend of the game is something India had witnessed before. And as they say, history repeats itself, another teenage prodigy made her debut 3 decades after the debut of Sachin Tendulkar and became a worldwide name in a matter of time. The prodigy broke a few records of the batting maestro leaving the world to take note of her talent. The prodigy turned sensation we are speaking about is Shafali Verma.
The young star started her international journey on 24th September 2019 at an age of 15 years and 239 days, becoming the youngest Indian to play an international T20 match. In November 2019, she broke the record of Sachin Tendulkar becoming the youngest Indian to score fifty in an international match, scoring 73 off 49 balls against West Indies. Her fearless batting and the elegant display was her trademark.
While it was a great thing to witness for world cricket, it was not something new for the people of Rohtak who saw and enjoyed her batting. The girl, who hails from Rohtak started to play cricket at an age of 8 years. Her father was a Cricketer too, but couldn't make it to the larger level, but he was determined to see his daughter make it to the highest possible level.
He trained her for the first few months, after which she joined the academy. But the boys refused to play with her, as unintentionally she might get hurt while playing. But the determined girl cut her hair short and started playing disguised as a boy.
It's an interesting story, that now an irreplaceable player in any format at any level, Shafali played her first match disguised as her brother replacing him in boys match. She let her bat do the talking and won the match as well as the series for their team.
She was also awarded the man of the match award. With some time passing, people understood that it is a girl who played with the boys and outshone them in every match. Everyone was left speechless seeing her hitting prowess and fearless batting. Her fearless attitude continued even further in domestic cricket which earned her the cap for Women in Blue.
Her consistent performance with the bat after her international debut made her a household name. She proved her worth in the team time and again. Her dominant performance in the women's T20 world cup 2020, was the reason women in blue reached the finals. With her clean hitting ability, she broke a flurry of records in the days to come. She became the first Indian to score two half-centuries in the debut test match, scoring 96 in the first innings and 63 in the second innings. She is also the youngest woman cricketer to achieve this feat.
This talented daughter of India has also been a part of the inaugural edition of "The Hundred". A few days back, she was signed by Sydney Sixers for the Women's Big Bash League 2021-22. Also, she played for IPL Velocity in Women's T20 challenge held by BCCI. She has achieved a lot, including the number one ranking as a T20 batsman, and all of it at a mere age of 17.
Courtesy : ESPN CRIC INFO At an age, when people can't even take the smallest of the decisions themselves, the proud daughter of India is ruling the world cricket. It's just the beginning of her career, and she has broken a flurry of records. One can only imagine the records she would be breaking in at least a decade or two more she would be playing for Women in Blue.
A teenage prodigy now has the potential to bring glory to women's cricket by bringing more and more viewers to watch the women's cricket matches to watch her bat. The superstar of India is a legend in the making for world cricket.
She had given her countrymen chances to rejoice in the short period she has served the Indian cricket. May her firepower in batting continue to illuminate the faces of a billion people with joy.